Ignem Progressionis Infinitum- Rewritten
by TheRegionsLegends
Summary: My name is Eon. After an accident involving a beagle and a Ninetales who stood on two paws, I became one of a rare group of so-called "hybrids", people with Pokémon traits and incredible powers. Everybody either hates us or is out to get us, but one threat looms above them all- the manipulative and powerful Plasmid Foundation. Pokemon hybrid TF, AU
1. Chapter 1 - A Tail of Transformation

Chapter One: A Tail of Transformation

Sometimes very simple events can have extremely far-reaching consequences. Such is the case for when my dog ran out. Little Bosco, our family beagle, was confined indoors most of the time, but the puppy so desperately longed for the great outdoors he jumped at any chance he could to jump out the back door and bolt into the trees.

Such was the case for tonight. "Bosco!" I exclaimed as the puppy wriggled his way out of the back door and into the backyard. I could just make him out in the glow of the few lightbulbs just by the back door. He bowed to me, his hindquarters high in the air as a sign of wanting to play.

Except I didn't want to play- I wanted to get my dog back inside before he runs off for good. I raised my hands in a calming gesture and walked slowly towards the floppy-eared pup. "Alright, Bosco, c'mere! Don't you want to go back inside? I have a Milkbone with your name on it…!"

There seemed to be an invisible circle around Bosco. Once I had crossed the line, he immediately turned and fled into the forest beyond our lawn.

I swore and ran back inside, grabbing a flashlight from the closet before running off after the little scamp. I wasn't worried about getting lost in the woods; I lived in the suburbs and this was simply the few acres they spared to appear environmentally friendly.

Frantic rustling echoed through the dark trees, evidence of the pup's movements. I decided to switch off the flashlight so he wouldn't dart off at my presence. As quietly as I could I tracked the sound of paws kicking up the leaves until by chance he ran right in front of me. "Bosco?" I called, causing him to stop dead in his tracks.

I wasted no time in throwing myself at the dog… or so I thought. Instead of the pet I was tracking, I fell atop a huge, furry tail, causing the owner to yelp and dash off. I tried switching on my flashlight after the animal, but it had already left.

Disappointed and a little itchy from where I brushed against the fur, I looked around a little longer to find tiny Bosco curled up by a tree, sleeping without a care. "Huh," I muttered, picking up the puppy, "I didn't think you'd come all the way out here just to nap…"

I later learned what happened to the owner of the tail.

Surprised and enraged, she pulled one of her many tails back only to find the curse had curiously already taken hold in the boy. She relished the thought of his pain for the crime of touching her tails… only to snap back to reality. She had cursed a human stranger! She wasn't about to retract her curse, but she could help him once it had ran its course. With her powerful nose she tracked the unfortunate human…

The walk back was more exhausting than I could have ever imagine. I felt like I had taken a break to run a marathon before heading back home. Slumped over and in a daze, I pulled open the back door, dropping Bosco to the floor before hobbling to my room.

"Lotus?" my mother called after me. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," I replied even as I began to feel feverish. "Just tired, I guess. Must have been out there longer than I thought. I'm just going to go to bed…" I didn't hear her reply as I shut my door and sighed. Extricating myself from most of my clothes and turning off the light, I dragged myself into bed to sleep, pulling my covers over my head, shivering despite the fever.

But sleep would not come. Instead, the fever rose until I was painfully hot inside ands my whole body began to itch. Unable to resist any longer, I frantically scratched my arms only to encounter an unexpected softness.

_What the…?_ I thought. My breathing, as ragged as it was, sped up. _Is this… fur? What's happening to me?!_

The pain intensified as fur coated my hands and spread down my arms, simultaneously relieving the itching and whipping my mind into a greater panic. Powerless to stop the change and frightened out of my mind, I could only watch helpless as an energy suddenly seized my body, doing… something… to it. All I could figure out was that the change to my body was accompanied by a steadily rising body temperature far beyond any fever I'd ever had, but it simply continued to climb at a terrifying rate.

Every bone in my head cracked. I tried to scream, but couldn't, the changes to my body taking precedence over my desire to be heard.

"Lotus?" I heard my mother knock through a mental haze of pain and heat. "You don't sound too good; can I come in?" Somehow I very clearly heard her collapse to the carpet as another set of gentle footsteps entered my room, shutting the door behind it.

I returned my attention to my body to find my face elongating into a vulpine muzzle, my ears having migrated atop my head and grown into triangular fox ears. I felt my eyes burn, though what happened to them was beyond me. My now silver hair grew extremely fast, falling past my shoulder blades in a matter of seconds while the fur on my chest and shoulders grew out into a sort of mane on my torso. A pinch at the base of my spine quickly revealed itself to be my spine lengthening and splitting into not one tail, not two or four or six, but _nine_ tails sprouting like weeds and growing to at least five feet long as a luxurious coating of silver fur tipped with blue enswathed each one. I was suddenly struck with the feeling that these tails were like precious, sacred jewels, never to be touched by unclean hands.

My feet elongated into three-toed canine paws, complete with a digitigrade stance and rough pawpads while small, black claws sprouted to replace my human nails. My breathing slowed as I realized the transformation had ended. I noticed that while my body was seethingly hot, almost scalding, I felt no pain. In fact, it felt more relaxing than anything else, as if I was in a sauna. I took a moment to collect myself, a process mitigated from the enjoyable warmth I now exuded. Clearly I had become one of those hybrids I've heard about on the news and my Social Studies textbooks, humans born with the appearance of an animal and with it a set of elemental powers. Apparently their population exploded about a century ago or so, and bringing along heavy persecution that had only strengthened in recent years. While I never personally minded them, my heart sank as I considered what would happen to me now that I was one of them. I sighed and opened my eyes, only to lock with the eyes of a fox.

I yelped in a surprisingly animalistic way and jolted off my bed, landing on my thankfully carpeted floor with a unceremonious thud. I turned back, still on my tails, to see not a wild canine, but a fox-like hybrid. Her deep red eyes continued to stare at me with an unmistakable look of concern as her own nine tails waved slowly behind her, and a quick whiff revealed a perfume of what seemed to be pine smoke and some sort of herb… rosemary? Despite, or perhaps because of, her furry appearance, I couldn't help but think she was quite beautiful. Her cream-furred hands were clasped together against the pink tee she wore, and they wrung one another uncomfortably as she spoke in a soft, quavering voice. "Are you okay? Are you hurt at all?"

It was strange to see her muzzle move in such a way to form human words, but the thought was swallowed up in my own attempts to reply. "I'm… fine…" I replied, blessedly unimpaired by my changed mouth. But then I frowned. "What did you do to my mom?"

"Oh, hehe," she looked away with an arm behind her furry head. "I put both your dog and your mom to sleep with my hypnosis. They'll both be just fine, I promise! If anything they'll just be more rested than normal."

"Okay," I nodded, still wary.

She sighed. "Look, I'm sorry I transformed you." Noticing my look of confusion, she elaborated. "Remember when you landed on a tail in the forest earlier today? That was... my tail. Um, see, when somebody touches my tails I get upset, and I mean _really_ upset. In my anger I cursed you to turn into a hybrid." She tilted her head to one side as she contemplated my appearance. "Although, I didn't try to make you a Ninetales like me…"

I growled and tilted my ears back, a response that would have been totally foreign to me were it not for her. "So let me get this straight," I replied in a low growl. " Just because I touched your tail, you put me through… _that?_ And now I'm condemned to be an outcast from society like you?!"

She put her hands up in a calming gesture, a look of fear evident in her eyes. "Woah, hey, calm down!" she shouted. "You might burn your house down; you're a Fire-type!"

That stopped me. I remembered the awesome and often terrifying powers the hybrids possessed, the least of which easily setting a building ablaze.

"Thank you," the fox-girl spoke slowly. "Now, I think I can show you what I mean. Do you mind if I feel your tails for a second."

Somehow I was stunned by her audacity. She wanted to touch _my_ tails? "No!" I shouted. "I won't let you anywhere near my… precious… oh." I suddenly felt very embarrassed, but still could bring myself to offer a tail.

"See?" she grinned haphazardly. "It's really an instinct more than anything else. We hybrids are quirky like that. And don't worry; I can reverse the curse. I just need you to not panic and hold still, okay?"

I exhaled deeply in relief. "Oh my gosh, really? Thank goodness! So what do I do?"

"Just hold still," she replied. "I can't guarantee it'll feel any better than your initial transformation, but at least you won't be… 'condemned' to this hybrid state. Actually, about that!" This time her ears fell back. "I'm tired of people seeing hybrids as a mistake or a fate worse than death. I happen to enjoy being a Ninetales, thank you very much!" A Ninetales, eh? Hybrid species had the strangest names. "I'll still change you back, but I'd appreciate it if you were a little friendlier towards our kind, okay?"

"Okay, okay," I replied, somewhat impatient. "I'll treat you guys as equals, alright?"

She nodded. "Thank you. And… sorry I cursed you." She winced, but with one swift movement her tails surrounded me as she closed her eyes to concentrate.

A tense moment passed. My canine hearing picked on her frantic heartbeat. "Everything okay?" I asked, my own heart quickening in response.

"Uhh," her voice was shaky. "It's, uh, it's not working."

"What?!" I shouted, standing only to stumble on unfamiliar paws and fall out of her tails. "What do you mean it's not working?!"

"I mean I can't retract the curse!" she cried in response, her tails flaring up behind her. "That's never happened before; normally I can undo them with hardly a thought, but yours…"

My ears fell back, which began to feel increasingly natural. "You mean I'm stuck like this…?"

"N-not necessarily!" she stammered hopefully, although her breathing patterns and heartbeat begged to differ, not to mention a distinct smell of anxiety. I shook my head. _Her what? I can't believe I noticed all that…_ "Even if I refuse to lift the curse, it wears off on its own in just a few hours. But… just in case, I'll check on you tomorrow, okay?"

"You don't sound too sure," I eyed her suspiciously.

"Look, I don't know what happened," she replied in an exasperated tone. "I don't know what happened to you to make me unable to reverse it, so either you learn to live with it now or hope things go back to normal for you tomorrow. What's your decision?"

I thought for a moment about her explanation. It seemed like I didn't have much of a choice in the matter. "Let's… see what happens tomorrow," I spoke carefully.

She bowed her head for a moment and exhaled before looking back to me. "I'll say this much: being a hybrid isn't a bad thing! You may not be the most liked of people, but between the magic and the enhanced senses and our tight-knit community, I think it's well worth the persecution. Think about that tonight, will you?"

I looked away for a moment. "You don't think I'll change back, will you?" I muttered instead.

She shook her head with a sad smile. "But… you never know, right?"

I could only sigh. "Well, see you tomorrow, I guess."

"I'll be there first thing in the morning!" she promised with her best attempt at a smile. Taking a moment to scratch me behind my ears, she silently slipped out of my room and closed the door, somehow avoiding smashing her tails in the process. I blushed lightly as I felt where her gentle claws had pet me.

A moan and a stirring outside my room reminded me of my mother. My heart thudded in anticipation on how to explain my appearance to her.

To my relief, she opened the door only to faint again.


	2. Chapter 2 - Accepting

Chapter Two: Accepting

"Is he awake yet?"

"Shh! I'd rather let him sleep. He's been through a lot; he deserves the rest."

I responded to the wish by groaning as I sat up in bed. Blinking my eyes open, I rubbed my face only to come across a long, furry muzzle. I yelped and flinched, my heart racing as I slowly remembered the events of last night, both my transformation and my last hope of returning to normal. Even though I kind of expected it, my heart sank as I came to grips with the fact that this would be my life now, a half-fox to be scorned by all.

"Hey," the fox-girl from last night whispered. "How are you doing?" I looked up to see her smile half-heartedly, disappointment evident in her eyes.

"I hate you." I muttered, looking away.

Before she could respond, a high-pitched but distinctly male voice exclaimed, "Hey, that wasn't very nice!" The owner of the voice was a pink-furred, cat-like hybrid casually floating above my carpet. He smelled of incense and cat, and in contrast to his short muzzle and small, pointed feline ears, he held a long tail rounded at the end behind him. The hybrid looked angry, his deep-blue eyes staring directly at me. "It's not like she _planned_ for you to get stuck like this, but it happens, you know?"

"No, Matthew, it doesn't," the nine-tailed hybrid groaned. "Look, I'm sorry. I really am, and you have every right to be angry with me, but just hear me out! I attend a school called Johiko Darck's Hybrid Academy. It's a private institution made exclusively for hybrids like us. It's a bit distant- in Minnesota, actually- but that's why I brought my friend Matthew."

"I can teleport!" he exclaimed, clearly thrilled. "So, are you ready to go? I know I am! Okay, let's go!"

"Wait, Matthew!" the fox-girl stammered. "I'd rather take this slowly, okay? It's traumatizing enough having your whole life flipped upside down." She took a moment to look at me. I wasn't much for friendliness at the moment, so I simply glared back. "Um... " she began. "Well, let's start with this: what's your name?"

"I'm Eon," I replied without a second thought, slipping out of bed and putting on my jeans. I opted not to wear a shirt- the enormous amount of fur on my shoulders would make that hard if not impossible. I moved to stand only to stumble on the unfamiliar paws that had replaced my feet. I felt like I was standing on my toes constantly.

"Nice to meet ya, Eon!" Matthew replied cheerfully as he supported me.

Then it hit me. "No, wait, my name's… um…" Why couldn't I remember my own name? "Lotus! My name's actually Lotus." But even as I spoke the words I could help but feel that was wrong… somehow. Ugh, could being a hybrid get any worse?

The girl with nine tails shook her head. "Just use Eon," she insisted. "All hybrids have a name they give themselves. Like me, for example. The name my mom gave me was Clara, but I think Kyu fits so much better, don't you?"

I couldn't help but smile. Cute girl, cute name… then I shook my head and glared at her again, reminding myself that she was the one who ruined my life.

She winced and grinned. "It's okay to like it, ya know!" She sighed. "Anyway, I think we should also-"

"What are you doing in my house?!" a familiar voice cried. My mother had finally awoken after I carried her back to bed (being a hybrid apparently made me stronger, too), and instead of fainting she simply looked terrified. "And where's my son?!"

"Tell your mother…" Kyu finished quietly.

"Hi, Mom," I looked down as my unchanged voice reached her ears.

"Lotus…?" she asked, now simply concerned for her child. As she approached, Kyu pushed Matthew to the side to make way for my mom. "What happened to you? Was it them?" she fixed the two hybrids with a stern look.

"Um, yeah." I replied, still too ashamed to look her in the eye. "Kyu, the one who looks like I do, cursed me to become a hybrid." I sighed and added, "Forever."

A furious expression was directed at my fellow Ninetales. Kyu quickly put up her hands and stammered, "Now hold on, hold on! I didn't mean to curse him; really my magic just… got away from me and now no matter how hard I try I can't change him back!"

"I don't want to hear your excuses!" Mom yelled. "You cursed my son to become a freak like you and you're going to-" she was interrupted by Kyu clapping her paw-like hands together, pulling them apart to produce an ethereal blue fire.

"I'm sick and tired of everybody calling us freaks…" she spoke in a low voice. "If anything, you should be thanking me giving him power you _humans_ will never realize!" Spreading her arms wide, the fire became a bright orange ring that spun around her from shoulder to waist, illuminating her in a fierce glow. "Sure, rally the your friends, the authorities, the government, whoever! But just know that by doing so, you're turning against your own son. There's nothing I can do and there's nothing I should do. Yes, I may have ostracized him from some shallow, high school friends, but in doing so I gave him strength, endurance, and speed to easily rival any Olympian!"

She wasn't done just yet, if her fur flaring up beneath her shirt was any indication. "I gave him the ability to summon and breathe fire, I gave him complete immunity to high temperatures, I even gave him control over the freaking weather!" The fire died down as the fur against her back flattened. "And you want me to apologize and change him back? I actually don't want to anymore, assuming I could have in the first place. We'll gladly befriend your son and help him meet other hybrids, but we certainly can't stop a mother from depriving her child of his only source of friendship now." The two looked daggers at one another.

"What… what do you want from us?" Mom asked quietly.

"We'd like to invite Eon- or Lotus, as you named him- to come attend our hybrid-only boarding school, Johiko Darck's Hybrid Academy," Kyu spoke in a more conversational tone. "The school _is_ in Minnesota, but my friend Matthew here can teleport us all there in a heartbeat. You, of course, may come visit whenever you'd like; the headmaster has a messaging system in place for that. And if you're skeptical, we can just let you visit. What do you say?"

"I still don't know if I can trust you," Mom spoke quietly. "If I could meet the principal or whoever's in charge, though, I may reconsider."

"Already on it!" Matthew declared. "I'm asking the headmaster to visit right now!"

"Wait, right now?" my mom interjected. "But-" A tall, lightly silver hybrid had appeared beside us. The seven-foot tall dragon-like hybrid had strange limbs that seemed to be either greatly elongated hands or five-fingered wings. Shiny skin like a dolphin's was stretched tight over his body, from his beaked head down to his digitigrade paws. He seemed to wear a sort of fierce, light red mask that belied his gentle expression, and as he turned to Matthew and Kyu I noticed two rows of five red plates or square spikes tearing ten holes in his suit.

He spoke in a low, calm voice. "Thank you for contacting me, Matthew. And Kyu, why didn't you tell me sooner? This is no trivial matter, transforming a human permanently as you did."

"Sorry, sir." Kyu looked down. "I was holding out that the spell would wear off on its own."

The headmaster hummed as he considered me. "No, his aura has been thoroughly and irreversibly changed. My deepest apologies, Ms. Kelvin."

"How did you know my name?" Mom asked.

"I'm a Lugia, a Psychic-type hybrid; surely you've heard of our abilities? While I do my best not to eavesdrop on others' thoughts, it becomes challenging when these thoughts are thrown at me as yours were. I believe it was something like an attempted polite handshake as you introduced yourself as Sharon Kelvin?"

"Yes…" she frowned.

"Rest assured the less you direct your thoughts to me the harder they become to hear. Now, on to the matter of your son. I represent my school, Johiko Darck's Hybrid Academy and indeed, I am Professor Johiko Darck." He proffered a brochure that my mom took to browse. "I would like to extend a formal invitation to allow your son to join. It is entirely paid for and the education he will receive is arguably some of the best in the country. I'm sure you've heard of the persecution we as a group are dealt, but on these grounds humans are only allowed in by invitation or to visit family. In other words, you are always allowed, but anyone who would hurt your son is certainly not. Now, would you like to visit the school? There are no obligations or fees and you may leave at any time."

Suspicion still lingered in Mom's eyes. "And how do I know you'll let us leave?"

"Ma'am, if I had no intention of letting you go, what purpose would this conversation serve? Could I not just spirit you away without warning or hesitation?"

"He has a point, Mom," I spoke up for the first time in a while. After Kyu's tirade about the good her curse did, I was beginning to like the idea of being a hybrid. "Why don't we give it a chance? I'm actually really interested in this school."

"Well…" the room fell silent as Mom weighed her options. "Okay. Let's see this school of yours."

Like Kyu said, we were there in a heartbeat. One second we were in my room, but the next we stood on a large campus lit by streetlights to make up for the little light dawn shared with us. Before us was a huge building of grey stone and ornate roofing that extended in both directions until my view was obstructed by similarly styled buildings on either side, though much taller at around six stories high. They seemed to surround the school like those brackets from Math class.

The campus itself was paved over with concrete, interrupted only by rows of trees and flowers and the occasional street light. Animal-like people- hybrids, no doubt- clutched textbooks protectively as they jogged to the main building.

"Those students are off to their early morning classes, useful if a student is in need of extra help or an extra challenge," Professor Darck began. "Those tall buildings on either side are the student dorms, and while you can't see it in this poor lighting. they actually wrap around to the back of the school."

_What?_ I frowned. _I could see it just fine!_

Kyu noticed my confusion and winked at me. "Make sure you add improved night vision to your list of reasons not to hate me."

"No expense was spared in the construction of this academy, and that includes making sure each type of hybrid is cared for. Your son has made an interesting trade-off when he transformed- as a Fire-type he is completely immune to the heat of fire, but water will forever be painfully chilling. Thus, the most effective way for him to clean himself would be to burn off any grime in bath of flames." Seeing my mother's apprehension, Darck nodded to Kyu.

In turn, Kyu took a deep breath, held her hands out in front of her, and exhaled a stream of bright yellow fire directly into her furry hands. After a few moments she closed her maw and displayed her hands to Mom with a grin. "Nice and clean!" she declared.

"Speaking of fire, learning to control one's power constitutes a significant part of every hybrid's education; I doubt you'd enjoy a house fire whenever your son got upset. This training may also lead to his participation in seasonal tournaments, physical battles between teams of six hybrids until one team is no longer able to fight. Rest assured, ma'am, that this is at no danger to any of the participating hybrids. Are you familiar with the extent of hybrids' durability and capacity to heal?"

When Mom simply eyed him suspiciously, Kyu spoke up. "Ms. Kelvin, I've been electrocuted, nearly drowned, cut open, horribly poisoned, and I've broken just about every bone in my body at least once, and there's not a scar on me, thanks to a special machine Professor Darck invented himself!"

Mom was terrified, prompting Darck to sigh. "Ma'am, you may forbid him from participating, but I hope you're aware that this is no more dangerous than human martial arts, and like the practice it provides incredible benefits for self-defense, self-worth, and his overall health."

"Then why couldn't I just let him study martial arts for the same benefits?" my mom rebutted.

"For one, he would easily react to and break the bones of all but the most skilled human opponents, and against hybrids his elemental powers will languish in the absence of proper training." Mom still looked unconvinced. Johiko groaned. "Ma'am, it is with deep regret I must make you aware of a certain threat… your son has been in danger from the moment he transformed… are you familiar with the Plasmid Foundation?"

"Aren't they the genetics company specializing in hybrids?" Mom replied. That's right, they've been in the news pretty often recently, mostly to show off their fusions of technology and hybrid powers.

"Do you know how they obtain their research?" Darck asked slowly. I could not help but feel waves of anger from him; I suspected that his Psychic typing might have something to do with it.

"They say that-"

"They kidnap young hybrids that catch their attention and conduct all manner of experiments on them!" The Lugia shouted in fury. "They disregard every law, regulation, and basic moral in the interest of their so-called 'science'!"

"Professor, calm down!" Matthew spoke up. "You'll wake the Psychics!"

Darck sighed, visibly calming down. "My apologies. I consider my students my children, in a way, and I'm sure you are all too familiar with the horror of finding your child in danger. Now, here's my point- if they catch word of your son and find him to their liking, and likely such a change in aura will definitely alert their spies, they will stop at nothing to capture him. Sure, they will seem diplomatic at first, but the more you refuse the harder they will push until one day you will awaken to find Lotus's bed empty. _However_" he made sure to stress the word, "If I can be permitted to teach your son to push the limits of his power, he will be able to fend off their attacks. Furthermore, he will be doubly safe within these walls, guarded by both myself and the legions of students who have similar powers. He may not have to train if you forbid it, but just know that the moment he steps outside these walls, he becomes liable to be spirited away at any moment.

The distrust was evident in Mom's eyes, but she nodded nonetheless. "I'd still like to be absolutely certain this is the best place for my son, though. Do you think we can continue the tour?"

"Of course," Professor Darck nodded politely. "If you follow me, I'll give you an example of where Lotus will be staying." Every time I heard that name I couldn't help but frown. It just wasn't mine anymore.

"My apologies, Eon," the Psychic headmaster craned his beaked head towards me with a smile. "But I prefer to use the name your mother is most familiar with for her sake. Rest assured though, she will grow accustomed to your hybrid name."

He led the group to the building on the left, mentally opening the doors with a wave of his wing-arm. The lavish lobby resembled a fancy hotel more than anything- deep brown and varnished wood tables and shelves were complemented rich red carpeting and ornate light fixtures.

"It's gorgeous!" Mom gasped, prompting Matthew to giggle.

Inside we were greeted by an extremely fluffy, grey mouse-like hybrid who smelled much like sawdust and scented cleaners. Long, white tufts of fur fell from behind his huge, rounded ears down to his waist where a nearly identical length of fur served as a gently waving tail. One of his grey-furred hands gripped a fourth fur, this one wrapped around his neck like a scarf, and with it he scrubbed the walls and shelves with great intensity, a phrase I never thought I'd say.

"Good morning, Cincci!" The headmaster pronounced it like sin-chee.

Cincci stopped on a dime and spun to face the Lugia. "Professor Darck! What brings you here?" he exclaimed. His voice and mannerisms proved him a teenager like the students.

"I'm giving a tour to a prospective new student," Darck smiled in response. "May I borrow a key to a vacant Fire dorm?" He held out a wing-like hand.

"Of course, right away, sir!" the mouse-like hybrid spoke quickly, skipping behind the front desk of the lobby. He rummaged through a couple drawers until he held up an orange keycard triumphantly. "Aha!" he exclaimed, walking quickly back to his headmaster with the card before him. As Professor Darck snatched the keycard from the furry hand, Cincci explained, "It's on the second floor on the far right side of the hallway from the elevator, room 244."

"Thank you, Cincci," the Lugia replied as he walked down the hallway with us in tow. Lightbulbs styled like candles lined the walls, illuminating the building much more than the breaking dawn could. We all herded into an elevator without a word until Darck spoke wryly, "When I said no expense was spared for my students I meant it, ma'am. Lotus will live in luxury in my care."

"I see what you mean," Mom replied in a daze.

The elevator opened with a soft bell sound and a rumble of mechanical parts as the doors gave way to let us pass. Matthew soared ahead, psychically levitating a couple feet off the ground. "C'mon, guys! Hurry up!" he insisted, causing Kyu to skip after him and Darck to simply chuckle. I tried to run after them only to stumble on my paws, so I simply resumed walking beside Mom and Professor Darck. Much to Matthew's impatience Darck took his time in sliding in the keycard and opening the heavy, brown door.

The dormitory had a radically different style to it, being made of grey, intricately carved stone and polished tile rather than the luxury wood just outside. "This is what I meant by catering to each student- everything in this room is fire-proof from the furniture to the beds, just in case. Not to mention the whole building has been laced with a special Psychic enchantment of my own design that will contain and extinguish any fire that Lotus or his roommates may produce." He motioned for us to follow him through a door into the bathroom. There was no faucet at the metal sink, I noticed immediately. Looking up, I saw my reflection for the first time. A wide-eyed silver fox stared back at me and mimicked my every movement. I felt like I was wearing a costume or watching a screen, but as the fox moved his hand up to his muzzles, the feel of fur and canine whiskers was unmistakable.

Kyu must have noticed what I was going through, because she stepped up beside me, a second fox in the mirror. "If it's any consolation," she whispered in my triangular ear, "I think you look pretty cute."

To my surprise, that comment was of great comfort. With a smile I looked back to her, only to avert my gaze and look elsewhere at each of three open doors- one led to your run-of-the-mill toilet but the other two had fixtures I had never seen in a home.

The first room was indented to hold a large pile of logs while a slit in the wall held jars containing what appeared to be all sorts of herbs. "This room is where Eon- sorry, Lotus will bathe," Kyu explained for her headmaster. "He can ignite the fire with his breath and then let the heat burn off anything a shower would wash away. He can also burn the herbs the room comes with if he wants to mix up a personal scent, kinda like a Fire-type's cologne or perfume. And once he's done he'll just pull this chain here and some water will put out the fire- better not waste wood, right?"

Kyu opened the door that led directly from the log pile room to the one beside it. The floor here was replaced with a metal grate above a huge fan. "And here E- ah, Lotus can blow off any ash or soot he didn't want to lick up himself. This dial controls the wind speed."

"Why do you all call him Eon?" my mom finally asked.

"I'm as confused as you are, Mom," I spoke. "But once Kyu transformed me my name _became_ Eon… somehow. Really, I have no idea why it happened, but Lotus just doesn't sound right, sorry. You can still call me Lotus, though."

Instead, Mom smiled for the first time today, "No, Eon, I'll try to call you by your hybrid name if that feels right. I want to support you as best as a human mother can."

"Aww!" Kyu suddenly squealed. When everyone turned to face her, she scratched herself behind her vulpine ears. "Heh, sorry. You just don't know how many parents can't stand their hybrid children. I just think it's amazing that you're willing to support your son."

"Well, of course I will!" my mom replied somewhat indignant. "He's my son, fox or not!"

"Thank you, ma'am." Darck spoke simply in his mellow voice. "Now, where would you like to go next?"

"Where do I go to enroll Eon?" she asked, prompting Matthew to cheer.

"Hooray!" he exclaimed. "Oh, man! Eon and I are going to have so much fun together, you have no idea! Eon, you've got to promise me to come by my room sometimes so we can party!"

"Not now, Matthew!" the headmaster laughed. "Let's get him enrolled before we make any plans. Besides, doesn't your Math class begin in an hour or so?"

"I can get ready later!" Matthew promised indignantly.

Darck smiled. "Very well. May I teleport us to the front office?"

All of us voiced our agreement before we were suddenly there. Styled in the same lavish fashion as the dorms, the front office was managed by a single clerk, a light purple-furred cat hybrid with enormous, pointed ears that tilted slightly to either side, and while it was hard to tell with her animal traits, she looked no older than twenty. A nameplate on her desk simply labeled her as "Espy". A slightly forked tail waved behind her as she typed away on the computer, and it swung as she turned to look at us.

I heard our Lugia guide inhale, to which Espy smiled and said, "Right away, sir!"

Espy turned to face me, her deep purple eyes seemingly looking through me even as she gave a friendly smile. "What's your name?"

"I'm-" I began, but she interrupted me.

"Your date of birth?" she asked, entering information into her computer.

"But I-"

"I can see what you're about to do, so just think of responding and I'll hear you," she grinned. Clearly she was very proud of this ability.

I thought about telling her my birth date and she resumed typing. "Address?"

Once more the answer formed in my mind only for her to extract it with her power and type it in.

"Species?"

"Ninetales," Kyu replied for me.

"Just wanted to be sure," she murmured as she updated the information on the monitor before her. She stood. "Okay, last thing I need is to take your picture." I was directed to a sort of kiosk with a lens built into it. She moved behind it as she instructed me where to stand before a click signified that the picture was taken.

With a few clicks of a mouse and some typing Espy turned on a machine that spit out a plastic card styled with flames. "Here's your ID card," she exclaimed as I was handed the small card. The face that smiled back at me was unfamiliar, yet I recognized it as my own in a heartbeat. These mental changes the transformation wrought were really disconcerting. "This is really all you need to enroll here besides a couple signatures from you and your Mom," Espy concluded as we were handed a clipboard and pen.

Mom took a moment to look over the papers, scanning each page carefully before flipping it over the board and reading the next. The three page document seemed to meet her expectations and with a click of the pen she had signed the paper. "Alright, go ahead and sign this… Eon." She seemed to say the name respectfully, doing her best to accept what I had become. "This will let you be recognized as a student here; don't worry about dropping out of your old school- I'll handle that," she smiled and winked as I scrawled my signature at the bottom of the page.

Espy took the clipboard back. "Congratulations, Eon Kelvin- you are now a full student of Johiko Darck's Hybrid Academy!"


	3. Chapter 3 - Properly Paranoid

Chapter Three: Properly Paranoid

"Well, ma'am, if you will excuse me, I'll set to work on fully registering your son," Professor Darck spoke respectfully in his deep, mellow voice. "While you wait, would you like to be transported back to your home? I assure you, it's no trouble on our part."

Mom nodded. "Thanks, we'd appreciate that. When should we return?"

"Perhaps around six o'clock tonight? I will contact you telepathically later today to confirm that you are ready."

"Six is great, thanks!" my mom smiled politely. Then we were back in my house's living room.

"I'll keep an ear out for your thoughts; simply attempt to speak to me mentally and I will hear you and reply in kind," Darck instructed before vanishing. I noticed I was acutely aware of the changes in airflow as he disappeared as well as the smells of my home and the sounds of its plumbing and air conditioning. It was almost overwhelming when I paid attention, but I was adapting quickly.

Mom turned to me. "Well, you heard the man! Let's get packing. We'll need clothes, hygiene products, probably a lot of shampoo…"

I thought about trying to scrub clean my mountain of fur only to shudder instinctively and remember how Fire-types got clean. "No shampoo, Mom," I said.

"Hm?"

"I'm a Fire-type now, remember? I can't touch water anymore, much less take a shower!"

"Oh, right. Well, no shampoo then, but we ought to get you some school supplies and probably bring your laptop… Am I forgetting anything?"

"Not that I can think of," I shrugged. "Why don't we just start packing?"

"Good idea. Let's go get you some clothes; I have to teach you how to dress properly if you're going to be getting yourself up in the morning." I chuckled silently to myself. I, like many other guys, had zero fashion sense. Sometimes it took two or three outfit swaps before my mom would let me out into public.

No sooner did I enter my room did my mom begin a lecture on which patterns and colors went with what and when to wear these clothes or these clothes and which would look best for a casual date versus a formal date… to be honest, it was all very confusing. I sort of zoned out halfway through so my mom had to prod me to get my attention. "Here, why don't you try this shirt on? I have to see if it… well, if it goes well with your fur."

She gave me a funny look, which I interpreted immediately. "You don't like how I look, do you?"

"Well, Lotus- I mean, Eon, I'm just confused, okay?!" she spoke in an exasperated tone. "My sixteen year old son suddenly became a two-legged fox overnight and now we're both thrust into this world of hybrids and fire and psychics…" She sighed and continued in a softer tone. "I don't know how you cope with it, but it's just hard for me; can you understand that?" She took a moment to stroke my cheek fur. "Eon, I will always love you and do my best to support you, and you know that! I just… I guess I need time to adapt to having a hybrid son. It's all so new to me." She shook her head, "But enough about me. How are you adapting to the change?"

"Honestly, it's a lot easier than you think," I admitted. "It seems the change also affected my behavior and, well, instincts. You'll notice it's no harder for me to talk with a muzzle instead of a regular human mouth? Really, the only challenging thing is running on these paws, but I'm sure I'll figure it out. But overall," I sighed as I leaned against a wall, "I think I'm really enjoying this."

She smiled warmly at me as she paused from her packing. "Oh, I'm so glad to hear that! I haven't seen you too upset about it. but I wasn't sure if you were just hiding it." She affixed me with a searching look. "Are you hiding anything?"

"Oh, no," I shook my head. "Ever since Kyu talked about everything I could look forward to as a hybrid I've actually been pretty happy to have been transformed."

Mom nodded. "That's good. But please, if you ever need to talk about it, I'm here for you, okay?"

She reached for my closest tail, presumably to pet it, but I recoiled sharply, whipping my tails behind me and away from her. "No!" I shouted, partly from anger but also from fear. "Never touch my tails!" Mom looked stunned.

Now that the, uh, "danger" of her hand had passed, I managed to calm down. "Okay, sorry, but really- do not ever touch my tails. I got transformed because I touched one of Kyu's!" Mom gasped in response. I continued, "I honestly don't know what would happen if you touched them; the way Kyu talked I seemed to be the only one she couldn't change back, implying she's done this before with no… lasting consequence. But… just in case, try to avoid them and I'll do my best to keep them to myself."

She sighed, bowing her head. I cringed and added, "I'll talk to Kyu and see if there's any way to let you pet them; they're very soft, believe me."

She put on her best smile, but fatigue and confusion still showed. "Don't worry about it," she insisted. "I won't lay a finger on them. Why don't we get back to packing? I see you still haven't put on that shirt; just because you have fur doesn't mean you can walk around like that!

"Mom?" I tried to interrupt, but she persisted.

"Honestly, it was embarrassing going through the school with you half-naked. I mean, you saw that pink cat guy and Professor Darck; they wore a full outfit; Professor Darck even had those spikes on his back, but he still wore a suit!"

"Mom!" I shouted, finally getting her attention. "Sorry," I added more quietly and pulled the clothing over my head and on my chest. I showed Mom the result- a collar terribly stretched by the fluff on my neck and a shirt that strained to reach my midriff over my thick chest fur. "I can't wear a shirt," I explained. "It'll either have to be custom-made to fit my fur…" I looked down and realized something rather important. My ears fell in mild annoyance as I relayed, "And… it looks like I have breasts. Nice." Now somewhat embarrassed, I pulled the shirt back off and did my best to flatten out my fur again. "So yeah," I concluded. "I'm going to walk around without a shirt for the rest of my life and I'm okay with that."

Mom fell silent as she tossed out my shirts and began rearranging my suitcase. A few moments of silence passed before she mentioned, "Professor Darck says that's fine. Apparently many hybrids have trouble finding clothes that fit their body shape. As long as you cover what must be covered and be sensible in your dressing, you can wear whatever you like." I nodded in understanding.

My ears pricked as a car came to a stop in our driveway. Mom noticed how I tilted my head towards the sound and asked, "What do you hear?"

"Someone's coming," I replied as soft footsteps approached the door. It was definitely shoes I heard. "A human."

Sure enough, the doorbell rang, prompting Mom to put down my socks and walk back downstairs with me close behind. She opened the door to find a tall man standing at our doorstep. Wry grey eyes gleamed behind square glasses, and his posture was as trim as his crew-cut hair and as straight as his well-ironed button-up shirt. With a smile, he spoke in a familiar tone, "Hello, ma'am! It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." He offered a handshake which my mother declined. He retracted his hand and continued seamlessly, "I am Dr. Jarred, of the Plasmid Foundation." My heart quickened, as did Mom's. His heart picked up the pace, too, but it seemed to be for different reasons. "I'd like to extend a formal invitation to visit my laboratory in Atlanta; we'd like your son to participate in a few simple studies for our research. They're very simple experiments, of course, basic tests of intelligence, strength, and that very interesting set of powers each hybrid possesses." His words practically dripped with enthusiasm. "I can promise you none of it will be invasive, threatening, or even the slightest bit dangerous, and you are more than welcome to stop at any time. But you must believe me when I say it will pave the way to a more advanced society!"

Dr. Jarred took a moment to collect himself, his excitement having gotten the better of him. "For example, what if we, mere humans, could learn to harness the aura your son so effortlessly commands? I recognise him as a Ninetales- one of my personal favorite breeds…"

_Breeds?_ I recoiled. _What does he think I am, some kind of cattle?_

"So he must possess extraordinary control over fire! The point of my research is to learn the _how_ and the _why_ of his power, so that we can implement it into our everyday lives. Imagine- your heating, once fueled by rapidly depleting supplies of oil and natural gas, now powered by the inherent energy around us as your son uses? Or the power commanded by the Electric types? You'd never need to pay another _penny_ of gas or power! Water-types will end droughts! Grass-types and their endless supply of produce will make a _mockery_ of world hunger!" He took a deep breath to calm himself. "My point, ma'am, is this: we are poised to bring about a technological revolution far bigger than anything else the world has seen! Technology is finally beginning to understand the power that these hybrids have commanded for centuries… and it does so with _your_ help." He looked at each of us in turn. "You have the power to contribute to a more perfect tomorrow, a world devoid of strife where everyone has more than enough to get by. And all it takes is a few hours off your weekend a couple times a month at the most. Please, I _implore_ you, consider my proposal. In fact, I have this for you…"

He rummaged in the pocket on his khaki pants to proffer a business card, with a picture of Dr. Colress Jarred on the front side along with an email, phone number, web address, street address, and business hours. On the back was a series of perfectly neat letters and numbers in pen. "That's an access code for my company's website. Go ahead and make an account there- it'll give you full access to all of my company's projects and achievements; as a man dedicated to the improvement of society, I don't believe in company secrets. Please, spread the word if anything catches your interest. Oh, and if you input the code you'll have direct access to message me and my colleagues at any time. Now, do you have any questions?"

"Yes," my mom replied in suspicion. "How did you know where we lived?"

"Oh, yes," Jarred replied, apparently still caught up in his fantasies if his wistful tone was any indication. "My colleagues and I make a habit of checking phone books and neighborhood directories when we have time in the hopes that there's a hybrid resident or two in the area. You'll have to forgive my intrusion, but when you strive tirelessly to improve all of society, sometimes you have to compromise certain niceties. Now, I must be going. If you'd like to participate in my tests on Saturday, send me an email! I'll be checking!" With that the researcher turned on a dime and left.

As Mom closed the door I commented, "He is a very skilled liar."

She nodded and tore up the business card. "We need to hurry. Grab your school supplies and anything else you want to bring. I'll pack some clothes. Go! I don't like this situation at all and the sooner you're at that school the sooner I can relax." I nodded and ran back upstairs.

Halfway up my paw landed weird on a stair and I slipped, tumbling back down to smack against the wall with an unceremonious thud. As I returned to my feet- er, paws, I found that I was completely unscathed; I didn't even feel sore.

"You okay there, Eon?" A familiar voice called. I turned to find Kyu waving at me, with Matthew exploring the living room ceiling and Professor Darck staring at the door with an unrivaled intensity. Kyu continued with a grin, "Actually, I _know_ that didn't hurt, but I thought I'd be polite anyway."

"Yeah, I guess," I replied. "So what are you doing here?"

"Professor Darck asked us to guard your home while you get your stuff; your mom called for help." She winked and whispered to me, "It also means I get out of French class"

"Indeed," the Lugia headmaster spoke up. "I knew Jarred's spies were effective, but to locate you within mere hours…" He proceeded to describe Dr. Jarred in ways I'd rather not repeat.

"The point is, we're gonna make sure he doesn't get greedy and come back with his men. Not that he would so soon after just meeting you, but I think both Darck and your mom are way too paranoid to leave you alone. Now, can I help you pack your things?"

"Oh! I want to help, too!" Matthew cried, soaring over us to hover between us and the stairs. "I can teleport your bags to my dorm room to keep them safe while you pack- that way you won't have to lift any heavy stuff. And then later when you DO get a dorm room I'll just teleport it all in there!"

He was so enthusiastic I would have felt bad to turn him down, not that I minded the extra help. "Sure, Matthew," I nodded. "I'll let you know when I'm ready for you, but you can help pack in the meantime."

"Okay!" He smiled and soared up the stairs to my room with Kyu and I close behind. I found the excitable hybrid examining my laptop curiously.

Something caught my attention. "How did you know where my room was? Did you read my mind or something?"

"Simple!" the Mew replied as he turned on my machine. "I went to the most Eony room in the house. Because what room's more Eony than your bedroom?"

Kyu translated, "He just followed his nose to where your musk was strongest."

"That's right!" Matthew explained. "Oh, nice laptop! HP Pavilion 17, right? That's a good one. I've got a custon Alienware myself- 32 gigabytes of RAM with a separate 8-gig video card, quad-core processor… it can play any game I want on it!"

"Alienware?" I replied, somewhat dumbfounded. It had cost me an arm and a leg to buy my laptop… Alienware computers were more of myth than a computer to me. "I didn't know you were such a gamer!"

"Are you kidding?" Matthew laughed, falling on his back in mid-air. For the first time I noticed just how long his paws were- kangaroos were probably jealous. ...Were there any kangaroo-like hybrids? I really should read up on the different species... My musings were cut short by Matthew's excited explanation, "I love to play games! You should totally visit my dorm one day- we'll play Mario Kart like there's no tomorrow!" His tail whipped back and forth in excitement, whacking against my desk with a soft thudding.

"Boys?" Kyu spoke up, fixing us with a cute but stern look. "Are we going to pack or are you two going to keep blathering on about laptops?"

"Oh, sorry, Kyu," Matthew spoke, humbled. "I'll do that now."

Then we finally set to work, gathering clothes, pencils, Wii Remotes, and other such necessities and packed them unceremoniously into a couple suitcases, prompting Kyu to scoff and sort them properly. As I offered my Wii's power cords for her to pack, she asked, "So how's hybrid life treating you? I know it's only been a few hours, but I just want to know if there's any questions I can answer or advice I can give."

"Um…" I took a moment to ponder. "Oh! Is there any way to let my Mom touch my tails consequence-free?"

"Oh!" Kyu gasped. "That's right; you have to learn to manage these tails, too! Um… okay, it's deceptively hard. You have to deliberately, honestly, allow her to touch your tails. Now that sounds easy, but you'd be surprised- may I touch your tails?" She offered a paw-like hand, one decidedly human in shape but with dark paw pads and short claws. "Just put one in my hand."

I nodded and swept my leftmost tail towards her, letting it fall into her hand… only to freeze a few inches early. I couldn't let a hand so… so _unworthy_ feel the glorious and luxurious fur that grew from my sacred tails... I shook my head, both embarrassed and confused by this strange and prideful instinct.

"Not as easy as you thought, eh?" Kyu grinned. I noticed for the first time just how cute her little fangs were. "At this point it comes down whether or not you truly trust me and consider me a friend." She looked me dead in the eye. "Am I your friend? Am I worthy to feel your tails?"

I looked away nervously, still unable to move my tails any closer.

She smiled and stepped closer such that her nose nearly met mine. She smiled. "Well, how about this?" I suddenly became enswathed by every one of her tails, wrapped in the softest hug I've ever felt. She pulled us close and whispered in my ear, "You're always worthy of mine." Stunned by her show of faith, I took a deep breath… and wrapped my own tails around her. She hummed pleasantly. "There you go, Eon… see? It's not too bad if you let a good friend feel them. It's a great way to show your trust in a person- anyone who's studied hybrid species knows that a Ninetales will only offer their tails to those they trust entirely." I blushed and desperately hoped it wasn't noticeable through my fur. It felt so wonderful being wrapped up in her soft fur… some part of me wished it would never end and we could embrace for the rest of eternity…

But end it did. Kyu withdrew her tails and pulled away, leaving my own tails to fall to the carpet dejectedly. Kyu finished by suggesting, "So take a moment to say to yourself that you trust your mother at least as much as you trust me. You do trust her, don't you?"

"Yeah, of course," I nodded.

"Then all you have to do is make sure you know that as deeply as possible. Say it to yourself- 'I allow my mom to touch my tails.'"

I nodded as I repeated the line over and over in my head; I did NOT want her to get cursed like me.

"Oh, and another thing- every curse... except yours... is temporary, and most of them don't end up with a new hybrid. More than likely if someone you don't trust tries to pet them they'll be unable to speak for a while or they'll lose all feeling in their hands or some other punishment like that. You can always end it early if you brush your tails against them and forgive them." Her ears fell backwards and she looked down in shame. "Well, most of the time…"

"Don't worry about it, Kyu," I put a hand on her fluffy shoulder in consolation. "I'm okay with this. Besides, you've made it sound like a lot of fun to be a hybrid."

"Yeah," she giggled, standing straight again. "That's because it is. C'mon, let's finish packing."

There was little left in the way of possessions to put away, especially since I could have Matthew teleport me back home if I had to. Just as I was about to make a final check of my possessions, a very familiar car and set of shoes approached my door again.

"What is it, Eon?" Kyu asked, noticing my pricked ears.

"He came back- Dr. Jarred!"

Matthew gasped and Kyu growled ferociously, her lips curling back to bare her sharp carnivore teeth in a genuinely terrifying display of anger. Unable to resist my curiosity, I walked back downstairs with my new friends flanking me.

Mom opened the door to reveal a very grave Dr. Jarred. "Ma'am, it is of great importance that you and your son come with me right now. These hybrids you're with-"

"Really?" Professor Darck spoke coolly, though his anger was palpable. He stepped in front of the doorway to glare at the man. "And what is this matter of such great importance that they should follow you and allow themselves to be kidnapped, Colress Jarred?"

"J-Johiko!" Dr. Jarred stumbled back, his face turning very pale. "F-fancy meeting you here. Would you like to see my newest creation?" He continued walking backwards into my lawn as Darck approached him. "It's a bit of a protoype, I fear, so it only has enough power for one use and it takes a while to charge up…" He grinned nervously before Johiko grabbed him with a wing and pulled him close.

"Give me one reason," he growled in a low voice, "why I shouldn't snap your neck right here and end your reign of terror."

"Because, friend," Dr. Jarred suddenly returned to his normal self, grey eyes twinkling wryly, "This device is a telepo-" He vanished without a trace, prompting Darck to roar in anger, a green blast of energy spiraling out of his maw into the sky.

"Why didn't you kill him?" Kyu shouted in dismay. "You had him!"

"My dear, that would be like killing a weed by cutting it down- it will just grow back with a new body for as long as the roots are intact. It was unlikely that he'd divulge his secrets right then and there, but at the least I could have tried to find that scrambler he carries and destroy it- there's a reason I couldn't just read his mind."

"Why's that?" my mom asked, clearly baffled by this turn of events.

"He's invented a special device, a sort of psychic scambler, that obscures the natural psychic waves I can pick up on and read, essentially blocking any Psychic from stealing his secrets from his own head. He's very paranoid about those who would try to stop his research and for good reason- I've been after him for years. Had I been able to locate this device and remove it, he would have been helpless to my power. But no! He invented a _teleporter_! Of _all _the potential fields he could have studied, he chose possibly the _only_ one that saved his research!"

"Sir!" Kyu exclaimed. "Calm down. This is a human neighborhood, after all- you shouldn't scare the locals."

Professor Darck cleared his throat. "Yes, of course," he replied calmly and stepped back inside. He looked to me. "Eon, are you finished packing?"

"Um, let me check, sir." I went back upstairs and spent a quick moment with Kyu and Matthew checking over my suitcases. I decided I had what I needed- my haste spurred in part by Darck's display of rage earlier- and fled downstairs with my suitcases in tow.

"You're all packed?" Darck asked surprisingly politely. He calmed down fast. Regardless, I nodded. "Excellent, let's go."

"Wait!" my mom cried. "I'd like to say goodbye first."

"'Goodbye?' You're coming with us, you know," Darck spoke casually.

"Why? I'm not a student or teacher there and I have a job to get back to- it's just Lotus and me, after all."

"Ma'am, Dr. Jarred barely lost his chance at capturing your son and he is probably livid over it. Now tell me, what son would not drop everything to save his kidnapped mother?" His meaning was clear.

"Then… who will take care of my house? Pay rent? How will I get to work?"

"I'll pay your house's rent and hire you on my staff," Darck waved it off. My mom looked defiant. Darck's voice dropped dangerously low as he explained, "Ma'am, this is not simply a matter of occupation or housing- it is to keep you and Eon _safe and alive_. Within a few hours he will have men _constantly_ watching this home, waiting for the chance to capture either of you without hesitation or a hint of remorse. If you value your son's well-being at all you _must_ come with me. Do you understand?"

Mom looked wistfully at her home. "But… my heirlooms… my possessions…"

Darck relaxed as he sympathized with her. He kindly added, "You may return to your home for brief periods under heavy guard… and I can give you a few hours under my protection now to gather your important possessions."

My mom looked at the Lugia in the eye for a few moments as she weighed her options. Finally she replied, "Thank you. I'll get packing."

Darck turned to me with a bright smile. "It's always so wonderful to have a new student join. Espy tells me enough paperwork has been done to get you a dorm and access to the school's facilities and you'll start classes tomorrow. So please, take today to tour the school. Kyu, Matthew, would you like to be excused from your classes today so you can show Eon around?"

The two hybrids cheered, to which Professor Darck chuckled. "Very well. I'll send a note to your teachers. Matthew, could you teleport Kyu and Eon back to the academy?"

"You got it!"


	4. Chapter 4 - Johiko Darck

**A.N: Thank you all for your support of this rewrite! I was afraid people would be bored of reading the same story twice, but your response so far has been wonderful. To answer some questions, "Kyu" is pronounced as just one syllable, like "kyoo". Furthermore, I don't plan on removing any characters unless they're really minor. Again, this will be the exact same story, just updated and added to. Your reviews, favorites and follows, and questions are always appreciated! Thanks for reading, and enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 4: Johiko Darck's Hybrid Academy

In typical teleportation fashion, we found ourselves back at the campus of Darck's Academy. The entrance, a clean-swept concrete plaza lined with flowers and trees, was still devoid of people; apparently everyone had already gotten to class, leaving us alone to roam the school.

I looked to Kyu and asked, "So where to first?"

Kyu began humming in thought. "I think… how about we explore the campus grounds first? Then we can head inside around lunchtime and show you our, uh, 'cafeteria.'" She seemed to stifle a giggle.

Matthew spoke up, "Yeah, but it's not really a cafeteria, more-"

"Shh! Shh!" Kyu interrupted. "I want to surprise him!"

"Oh!" Matthew replied, surprised himself. "Uh… okay! I won't say a word!"

"Thanks," replied Kyu. "Now let's begin." She seemed rather awkward as she did her best to walk us along and explain, "Um, so… Eon, this is the, uh, main campus! All the trees and landscaping are grown and cared for by our own Grass-type students -you might find yourself working around the school every now and again to more or less pay for your education- classes go from eighth grade all the way to college doctorates here, and if it's all being paid for you owe Professor Darck something fierce!" She cleared her throat and continued, "So… yeah. You'll normally work some job every other semester based on your typing and what jobs are needed. As a Fire-type, you'll either work outdoors -our natural body heat makes summer pleasant and winter easy to bear- or as a chef or something."

I nodded in understanding. Having begun to consider college myself, I was well aware of just how much cheaper and easier it would be to work part-time at the academy rather than find some convoluted way to pay for schooling and rent… assuming I'd find a college that accepted hybrids outside of this one.

"Um… how about we check out the campus park now?" Kyu offered, to which Matthew and I voiced agreement. "Okay, great," Kyu replied.

She walked us around the right side of the main building, a towering structure that just now struck me with just how _large_ it was. As we approached I did my best to look up and see the top, estimating it at four stories high and surprisingly wide. When we rounded the corner, however, my vulpine jaw dropped. The building seemed to never end! While much of my view was obscured by a connection between the bracket dorm building and the main building, I could follow each structure's roof until they all converged in the center of my view.

"How many classrooms are there?" I asked, dumbfounded.

"Oh, in here?" Kyu clarified. "None. This building just houses the cafeteria, front office, and the eighteen Type Gyms."

"Type Gyms?" I repeated, confused. "What are those?"

"Special gymnasiums Professor Darck designed- each caters to a specific hybrid type to help them improve their elemental abilities- the Fire Gym will help us utilize our own type to our advantage, teaching us how to breathe fire longer and at higher temperatures, for instance, or how to put out flames with nothing but our breath and our willpower- a must for a Fire-type in a flammable environment like any human building ever." Despite the obvious frustration in her voice, I nodded in excitement.

Kyu continued, "Every other day you'll spend around three hours in a gym matching your typing- in your case, just the Fire Gym- to properly hone your battle techniques and maybe some more domestic uses like cooking."

"Can a hybrid have multiple types?" I questioned.

"Oh, yeah, yeah," Kyu confirmed. "We call 'em dual-types. There hasn't been a hybrid with three or more types yet, though; two's the max it seems." We entered the connecting hallway.

"So… this is kind of a strange room," Kyu commented. Sure enough, it was all one room- one very, very long room- adorned similarly to the front office and lined with doors on either side. "It's mostly to give any student quick access to the Gyms without having to step outside, but it's also handy for things like announcements, advertisements, and other such goodies; here you can find tournament and club sign-ups, not to mention somebody offering just about anything a hybrid student could want… provided it's legal. And sometimes not. Those are shot down pretty quickly, though." I looked around to find all of the flyers Kyu promised, but also a frequently repeated sign: "NO RUNNING."

"No running?" I scoffed. "Isn't this a fantastic place to run? A straight line with nothing in the way?"

"Let's see how you like it when a six hundred pound Steel-type barreling through at full speed crashes into you when you're carrying your lunch or textbooks or whatever," Kyu gave me a wry look.

"I see," I nodded in response. I made a mental note to resist the urge in the future.

We proceeded to walk at a sane pace through the rest of the hallway, the flyers becoming increasingly scarce as we went on. After walking about a mile, I estimated, we approached the opposite side, the flashy papers becoming frequent once more and now advertising various tournaments and sports.

"You guys play sports?" I asked, surprised. Somehow I was surprised hybrids would play sports… then again, they are banned from professional teams, I remembered.

"Of course we do!" Matthew replied. "We've got football and soccer and baseball and basketball and lacrosse and rugby and swimming! And a few others but I forget."

"Do you play any, Matthew?" I probed.

"No, I'm not very good at them," he shook his head. "Psychics have to be very, very careful _not_ to use their powers on the ball, but I just can't help myself! I just want to win so much my brain thinks 'Oh, how about we just push it in the goal with our mind!' and then I get in trouble." He was dejected for just a moment before he swiftly returned to enthusiasm. "So I play video games instead! It's really really hard to change a video game with psychic power, so I don't! Much better that way, I think."

"Anyway," Kyu chuckled, "Why don't I show you the field?" We were led into the blinding sun as Kyu opened the exit. After giving myself a moment to adjust, I gazed upon a huge park that didn't seem to end. Straight ahead were bleachers surrounding an American football field, and to my left was a baseball diamond and volleyball court. But everywhere I looked was grass, grass, and more grass.

...Except, of course, for the building to my right. The oval-shaped stadium looked like it had been stolen from some professional team and dropped directly onto the school's grounds, with its polished look. In size it was definitely smaller than a massive, sixty-thousand seat NFL stadium, but it still easily dwarfed anything else in the park. "What's this?" I asked breathlessly.

"Eon, this is the Battle Stadium." Kyu announced with some flourish. "This is where your training in the Fire Gym will be put to the test, a six-on-six team battle that doesn't end until one team concedes or is entirely knocked unconscious."

I winced in sympathy. "Yeah, about that. You guys enjoy being literally beaten senseless?"

Kyu winked. "You only get hurt if you mess up; besides, we can completely recover from any broken bones or other horrible injuries thanks to a Healing Machine someone here invented a few years back. Since then, Darck decided the best way to train his students self-defence against threats like the Plasmid Foundation would be to make it into a game! The greatest part about it is that we're _encouraged_ to fight as hard as we can and hold nothing back- if we don't fight back we get destroyed, and if we're worried about permanently damaging our opponent, one quick trip to the Healing Machine will correct any sort of damage you inflict. Since we're so used to using every bit of strength we can muster, we're totally prepared to go all out against Jarred's men!"

"Hold on, I thought you said we're by default stronger and more powerful than all but the most athletic humans?"

"Heck yeah, we are!" Kyu grinned.

"Then why are you all so concerned about the Plasmid Foundation? Aren't they just humans?"

Kyu tilted her head. "Well, yeah, but they still have all the other things humans have made- you know, guns, explosives, vehicles, armor… humans may be flimsy compared to us, but they sure know how to build!"

"And why couldn't we build the same?"

Kyu laughed. "Well, for one, we're not trying to kidnap people! And two… well, we sort of outclass modern weaponry. Why bother using a gun if you're a living flamethrower? Not to mention our inhuman durability- I got shot once, right in the thigh." She pointed to an innocuous spot on her leg. "It hurt like crazy, but it seems like our skin's like natural kevlar- it barely made it an inch into me."

"Who shot you?!" I gasped.

"Oh, just some Foundation guy," she waved it off. "I was coming home from school one day when I was jumped by a couple guys from the Plasmid Foundation. See, they were _pissed_ that I didn't want to participate in their 'harmless, fun research for the benefit of humans and hybrids alike'. When I ran they started shooting at me. I lucked out and avoided most of them, but one got me right in the thigh. Still, I managed to make my way out of the alley and bleed my way home."

"Wait, why on Earth were you in an alleyway? Isn't that just begging for trouble?"

"It was a shortcut, okay?" she exclaimed, exasperated. "Besides, if any regular person tried to mug me I just set myself on fire and they always went away. You don't mug people who set themselves on fire. But these guys were wearing fire-proof armor and everything! All I could do was run."

"And… all the way home nobody bothered to help you with that bullet in your leg," I challenged.

"Um, hybrid? Hello?" She tapped her fox muzzle in demonstration. "I know you haven't seen it first hand, but most humans either treat us like garbage or like we're not there at all. And who gives a crap about bleeding garbage?" She grumbled, "At least Mom had the decency to help me clean up..."

I decided to risk the question, "Um, if it's not too personal-"

"No, Mom and I didn't really get along," Kyu predicted, rolling her eyes. Her tone suggested she was asked this a lot. "I mean, it's not like she abused me or anything, but it was pretty clear she didn't really like having a hybrid daughter. Anyway, the wound left a pretty nasty scar, but soon after I came here I managed to get rid of it with a few minutes in one of those Healing Machines."

"Can we show Eon inside the Battle Stadium now? Please?" Matthew asked with his hands clasped together beseechingly.

"Sure, why not?" Kyu replied with a smile, clearly relieved to have changed the subject. She jogged at a surprisingly swift pace, but I found myself easily keeping step with her with my newfound hybrid speed. Luckily I managed to stay on my paws the whole way and within moments we were at a very grand entrance: an archway that towered several feet above us. The school's insignia, a heavily stylized etching of a Lugia like Professor Darck that was curled with its wings outstretched, divided the words "Battle" and "Stadium" at the top of the arch.

We walked through the entrance. Down the hallway we were met with two grey staircases leading to either side of the bleachers, and a little further down was a set of locked metal doors. "Those lead to the teams' waiting room," Kyu explained. "To prevent sabotage they're locked, sealed, and enchanted with psychic wards when not in use. But if you'll follow me I can show you the field from the bleachers!" She ran up the right staircase, her many tails fluttering behind her. Matthew and I followed her up a couple flights of stairs, my claws clacking against the metal, up to the top row of bleachers.

Once more, the size and quality of the stadium was stunning. The square field itself actually took up most of the stadium, which I estimated to be quite longer than an American football field, but it had no markings or lines aside from one right down the middle and one on either side near the edges, all parallel to one another. The bleachers themselves were much like movie seats, with each hybrid granted their own blue cushioned chairs and armrests. "Wow," I commented. "This is pretty awesome."

"You bet it is," Kyu giggled as she gestured to two large holes on either side of the stadium. "You see those? Those are drainage pipes."

"Does it rain that much here?" I guessed.

She chuckled. "You could say that. See, whenever some hybrid decides he fights best in a torrential rainstorm or wants to summon a tsunami or eruption, the water or lava has to go somewhere! Psychic shields protect the crowd, but rather than fight in an ocean- which is entirely one-sided- we prefer to get rid of the water once the attack ends."

"Hybrids can create that much water?" I gasped, dumbfounded.

"The Water-types, yeah." Kyu grinned. "But you should see the infernos a properly trained Fire-type can produce! With one breath you could coat the entire field in a raging firestorm to incinerate your foes!" She noticed my look of delight and winked. "Still think becoming a hybrid was the worst thing that's ever happened to you?"

"Not anymore!" I laughed. Sure enough, I think exchanging a human body for a tougher, stronger, and fireproof hybrid one was a great choice... despite not having a say in the matter. Nevertheless, I frowned, looking at my furry hands. "Well, it IS really weird being a fox person instead of a regular human, but… I guess I'm adapting." Kyu clapped my shoulder comfortingly.

"Hooray for hybrids!" Matthew cheered, somehow causing iridescent pink bubbles to appear around us and gently descend to our paws and vanish. I followed one down and poked it to find it surprisingly solid. Curious, I cupped it in my furry hands, finding not even my claws sufficient to pierce its thin membrane; it simply indented under the nail.

"Oh, you like them? Here! You can have this one!" Matthew suggested. I looked up in time to see Matthew pull his hands apart, a huge, pink bubble forming between them. Once the Mew's face was obscured by the ball, he pushed it at me with a little bounce.

I caught the bubble with outstretched hands, finding the orb to be soft yet definitely solid, easily withstanding my attempts to squeeze it or poke it with my claws. "Thanks, Matthew," I replied, still looking over the perfectly smooth sphere.

I looked up with a smile to find Matthew sitting on a bubble of his own. "It won't pop unless you try really, _really_ hard, and you also can make it as big or as small as you want!"

I grinned. "So what's to stop me from from filling the entire stadium with it?

"Well, it has to take energy from _someone_ to blow up, you know," Matthew said as if it was obvious. "You'll get super tired if you try to make it huge, but you can if you want to. My record's a little over ten feet big, I think."

I decided to give it a try. "So how do I blow it up?" I looked it over without finding any sort of obvious valve.

"That's easy!" Matthew giggled. "Just put a paw on it and focus on making it bigger and it will!"

I nodded and did so, directing my thoughts at the bubble to enlarge it. Sure enough, my hands were pushed further apart as the iridescent ball expanded… though at the cost of some of my stamina. It was a small drain, yes, but I definitely felt a little more tired. Each few inches of growth seemed to take exponentially more of my energy, so by the time it was six feet wide and atop the bleachers rather than between them, I was gasping.

"Do I… do I get my energy back if I deflate it?" I asked.

"Um… no, sorry, Eon," Matthew spoke in sympathy. "It actually takes a little bit of energy to deflate it, too, but it's not nearly as hard." Nodding once more, I tentatively began to let it deflate under my paw, finding the process to be much less exhausting. With no more energy than it would take to run up a flight of stairs I had deflated the bubble to the size of a marble which I then pocketed.

"Does this mean I'm a Psychic-type, too?" I asked.

Matthew giggled. "Nope! Ninetales are Fire-types through and through! I'm the only Psychic in this stadium! But anyway, when I made that bubble I made sure to tell it, 'Now, you listen to Eon, or I'll pop you!' And so it does! I make a personal bubble for all of my best buddies!"

I looked to Kyu, who smiled merrily. "Based on what other Psychic-types say, it's not really sentient; Matthew just has a… unique way of weaving aura. And yeah, I have one, too. It's actually really good for stamina training and insomnia considering how fast you get tired from blowing it up, not to mention it's an amazing shield if you get inside of it. ...It's, uh, banned from tournaments, technically. You can only fight with what you can make on the fly in the stadium."

"Kyu thinks of all these really weird things to do with her bubble, but she never actually plays with it like she's supposed to!" Matthew complained.

Kyu laughed, "Sorry, Matthew! Tell you what, this Friday after my Gym training we can go and play catch or volleyball or something."

"Yay! Thanks Kyu!" Matthew flew into the vixen for a hug, nearly knocking her off her paws while his long tail curled around them both- nevertheless, he made sure not to make contact with her own tails.

Kyu extricated herself from Matthew's enthusiastic embrace and turned back to me. "Shall we move on?"

Matthew and I followed Kyu's enthusiastic jog back through the hallway and to the main campus. She pointed out the grey stone buildings lining the far side of the plaza even as we walked toward them. "Those are where we actually learn," Kyu explained. "You know, basic school subjects like Math, English, the sciences, and the other classes you'd take in any other school! The teachers here are really tough, though- you really do have to try your hardest to stay on top of your studies, especially if you're in Honors courses. Well, I mean, you won't get kicked out if you fail-this is practically the only safe place in the country you can learn at- so you'll just repeat the grade.

"But still- make sure you do your best here or Professor Darck will never let you hear the end of it. I mean, you think he'd be busy being the Headmaster and all, but somehow he found time nearly every day to ask how I'm doing in Math and explain whatever I couldn't understand. I was grateful, yeah, but it was a little disconcerting how he seemed to be everywhere I went! He even interrupted my _dreams_ to help me with my homework! How creepy is that!"

I couldn't help but chuckle. "Maybe he just cares about you personally?"

Kyu's eyes widened. "Oh, no, he does this to everyone! I don't know how he finds time for it all, but he's like everyone's father and tutor. And there's like five thousand students here!" She giggled. "Although, it is kinda nice. I never knew my father, so the fact that he cares so much about all of us like a dad should is really heartwarming, wouldn't you say?"

I smiled. "Same here. My dad died before I was born, so I never really had a father." I chuckled. "Maybe I should fail a couple classes to talk to him more!"

Kyu snickered, but cautioned. "Oh, you'd better not! He's a three hundred year old Psychic- _nothing_ gets by him. But don't worry- he'll find time to talk to you just about every week. I swear he can duplicate himself or turn back time or something 'cause there's no way he can talk to everyone every week."

"Three hundred," I repeated, fixing Kyu with a questioning stare. "Professor Darck… is three hundred years old."

"Mhm!" Kyu nodded emphatically. "He's got stuff from the 18th century and everything!"

I shook my head in disbelief. "What about us?"

"Average Ninetales' lifespan is… well, I'll put it like this- the first recorded Ninetales died in the 1980s, and she wrote poetry during the Heian period of Japanese history… about a thousand years ago."

My jaw _dropped_. "A… a thousand years?! H-how old are you?!"

"I'm still 16 years old," she insisted. "To be fair we are kind of a rare breed, even for hybrids."

"So how long does a Lugia like Darck live?"

Kyu shrugged in response. "There's, like, three? He's the youngest, actually- the other two pretty much got bored of humans, I heard, but the oldest is at least one thousand and shows little sign of aging. Yeah, a few extremely rare hybrids have been around since the dawn of civilization and a lot of them are still the only ones of their kind."

"Like me!" Matthew interjected. "Never ever before has a Mew been born and Professor Darck thinks I might live for a super long time, too! So we can be friends forever and ever!" He wrapped his arms around us both in a cheerful hug.

Something about living that long bothered me. I mean, yeah, death was scary, but to just keep living for hundreds and hundreds of years? It made me nauseous somehow. I tried to steer the conversation away from the thought. "Has Professor Darck ever gotten on your case for failing, Matthew?" I asked.

The floating cat replied, "Nope! I've never failed anything, you know- it's all too easy! The only hard part is the homework, and that's just 'cause it's sooo long and boring. But my teacher says something I always understand it. I mean, it's obvious, isn't it? Like Calculus! Everyone always seems to think it's super complicated to integrate trigonometric equations and that kind of stuff and I'm like, 'Dude, all you have to do is follow the rules your teacher told you about and it's really easy!'"

I thought of my own struggles with the subject and shook my head. "Are all Psychics supergenius immortals?"

"Not quite," Kyu clarified. "Most of them are perfectly normal hybrids sans the whole mind powers thing. You just happened to have met two of the most powerful in the school." I looked to Matthew in surprise. Matthew grinned.

"Well, factoring in age," Kyu chuckled. "The graduate Psychics here could take any of us on easily." By this point we had reached the other side of the campus, so Kyu opened the door to lead us into the cooler building. In contrast this building was much more modern in appearance, stark, light grey walls and clean trims above smooth white tile shining with the fluorescent lighting above.

"It's so different," I commented. It was certainly a far cry from the lavish design of the main building and dorms.

"Yeah, see, about a year after I got here all the educational buildings were burned down. Officially the perpetrators were never caught, but any Psychic worth her salt could tell you exactly who was at fault. You're no Psychic, but I'll give you three guesses." She looked to me expectantly.

"Um… an upset Fire-type?"

"Not quite- the building still carried fireproofing enchantments courtesy of our Psychics, and they were too strong to be broken by just any student, Psychic or not. Second guess?"

"The Plasmid Foundation?"

"Bingo! Years of research and study apparently prepared them for a midnight attack- they used some sort of device to nullify the enchantments before torching the whole structure with their aura-powered flamethrowers. Come morning there was a very big pile of ashes just across the campus. I think they were trying to discourage students from staying so they'd be easier targets."

"So why didn't they go for the dorms or the main building?" I challenged.

"Well, aside from the fact that nobody noticed them until it was too late- a feat hard to accomplish when you're near, what, hundreds of Psychics? Anyway, they're actually really, REALLY reluctant to kill us, and with a fire so close to our less heat-tolerant Grass and Steel-types they decided not to take the risk. That may seem out of character for a kidnapping bunch of scumbags… but after all, you can learn a lot more from a living subject than a corpse." Her tone betrayed a deep hatred for the organization. She continued with much less odium, "Anyway, c'mon. I'll show you around."

This building was the Science Building, we learned. The three-story structure, filled classrooms dedicated to teaching students everything from ecology to quantum physics, made up the majority of the building with the rest of the space taken up by labs dedicated to student research for their doctorates and whatnot. The other buildings were similarly themed, one teaching math while another taught the arts and foreign languages, including English for the foreign hybrids who sought protection here.

As we exited the History building, a bell rang from the corners of the building and the two small speakers placed beneath each lamppost at regular intervals every few feet in three orderly rows down the campus, gradually diminishing in strength until I could barely make out the ones nearest the main building. I closed my eyes and groaned, unused to processing so much information from my sensitive vulpine ears. By contrast, I opened my eyes to find Kyu and Matthew looking downright ecstatic, Kyu literally panting with her tongue hanging out as she looked towards the main building. "What's going on?" I asked.

Kyu looked at me and put her tongue away with some chagrin. "Lunch time!"


	5. Chapter 5 - A Conflict of Opinion

Chapter Five: A Conflict of Opinion

"Lunch time?" I chuckled. "What, is the food just that good?"

"Yes." Matthew replied, ironically sounding dead serious for the first time.

Looking around, I realized he had teleported us to the entrance. Glass doors covering a wide entrance led into the cafeteria, although it seemed to resemble a huge banquet hall or all-you-can-eat buffet. The white ceiling was four stories above us, broken up by long glass chandeliers dangling like jeweled stalactites. Tables surrounded by cushioned chairs or benches sprawled throughout the nearer half of the room while a delicious combination of more scents than even my enhanced smelling could pick apart wafted from the far side. This pattern repeated on all four floors, with more food and more tables arranged in rings higher up, granting the middle of the ground floor an uninterrupted view of the ceiling. Kyu walked briskly towards a counter on the left side of the ground floor and I followed. Matthew broke off from our group, flying over to the opposite side of the long counter Kyu led me to.

The smell of all sorts of cooking meat quickly overpowered any other food as we approached, giving a clear indication of what Kyu was hungry for. "So, as foxes," she explained as we grabbed trays and got into line, "We're carnivores. While we still can digest things like grains or vegetables, going too long–as in, like, one or two meals–without something meaty will just make us feel sick or unhealthy. On the plus side, though, it means we can devour raw meat with no side effects!"

After making sure nobody was behind me to dirty my precious tails, I allowed them to wag excitedly at the thought of the meal before me before slowing them from embarrassment. These animal instincts were almost… demeaning.

Kyu read me like a book. "Go ahead! Let them wag all you want! We're _all_ hybrids here; our foxy instincts are something to be proud of, not something to suppress!" She chuckled. "In fact, people here will actually frown upon hybrids who try to act too human. Sure, we're people same as everyone else, but if you've got your own unique instincts and behaviors you'd better embrace them! You'll feel a lot better, trust me."

Hesitantly, my tails resumed their previous velocity as my nose twitched, sniffing all the delicious meat and… blood? I simultaneously recoiled in disgust and salivated in anticipation. With a bit of effort, I allowed myself to look forward to tasting a bloody, raw steak… the experience was definitely foreign, but true to my friend's word permitting myself to enjoy the thought seemed to put me at peace with myself.

My introspection ended abruptly as a short, black-furred vulpine hybrid dropped a raw carve of beef on each of our plates. Yellow rings of fur, one on his forehead and one halfway up each of his long, upright, fluffy ears, seemed to glow briefly. He stared at the food he was serving in what was unmistakably ravenous hunger. To be a carnivore surrounded by so much forbidden meat… I hoped he got to eat well after his shift.

But the smell of the meat was proving too enticing to focus on anything else. I had to restrain the urge to devour my food on the spot; I wasn't going to act _that_ animal. Instead I followed Kyu to a cushioned bench along the far wall, a reasonably short walk made maddeningly long by the blood driving my nostrils into a frenzy.

We sat across from one another against the dark wood wall. At this point I gave up and surrendered myself to whatever instincts I had awakened with my lunch. After pinning down the meat beneath my claws, I ripped off a large chunk of warm beef with just my teeth and discovered a number of things.

For one, my jaw was… locked in a way. I couldn't move it to the side to grind my food—it only moved up and down. Useful for tearing up meat, I suppose, but not so great for other foods. It elicited a feeling of being trapped, surprisingly. Suddenly I couldn't move in a way I had been able to my entire life. Sure it was just my mouth, but my heart still thudded in anxiety, protesting being restricted in any way.

The second and more important was the taste. Having eaten my meat cooked all my life, this meal proved to be quite different. The texture was mushy and stringy like an old vegetable, which was instantly distasteful, but a much louder part of me was too wrapped up in the euphoric taste; every bite tore up the meat and squeezed out delicious, metallic tasting blood that ran down my throat with each swallow.

I was polarized. The part of me that had always been human abhorred the idea of eating raw, soft, bloody meat, but the part of me Kyu created, the one comfortable with all sorts of fox-like behaviors and eating habits, pushed my body to snap up another piece of beef and quickly devour it.

Two large steaks later and I was licking my fingers and claws clean of blood. Matthew had apparently slid into the seat beside me because he giggled melodiously. "You really like beef, don't you?"

I looked over to him and his own half-devoured fish with some chagrin. "Yeah, I guess. Although… I feel like I'm divided with myself on whether to enjoy it. I mean, I'm eating _raw_ meat! That's a little gross, don't you think?"

"No," Kyu replied hesitantly. "I've eaten all sorts of raw meat and never once felt disgusted. Maybe you had a bad piece?"

"Um…" I thought of the best way to put it. "I think it's just because some part of me still thinks I'm human and shouldn't eat meat without cooking it first."

"I see," Kyu nodded. She had a strange look in her ruby eyes. Disapproving? Curious? Upset? Maybe it was a combination of the three. "And which part do you listen to? The human Lotus? Or the hybrid Eon?"

What kind of question was that? If I had been asked that last week I could have easily replied "Lotus", but now I've been both… "I don't know," I admitted. "When I imagine myself I still think of a human teen with brown hair and green eyes. But…" I looked at my silvery fur and felt the fluff on my chest. "That's not me anymore. I think I should try to reconcile my two halves—a human mind in a hybrid body."

"The correct answer was to forget you were ever human," Kyu literally growled, a low rumbling in her chest accompanying her words. "Why would you ever want to be one of those weak, heartless wastes of meat? They lie and cheat and steal and do anything it takes to push us hybrids down and make sure we never get equality. You know every few years a bill gets to Congress about whether or not to issue _hybrid hunting licenses_?! I guess enough of them have the decency to recognize we're people, too, considering the bill never gets far, but their sympathy ends right there."

I felt very defensive about my species… my old species. "What, and you're saying hybrids don't ever lie or cheat or steal? That they don't use their powers to terrorize or hurt humans?"

"Hell, no!" Kyu replied, growing angrier. "How can they when the slightest misstep on their part is broadcasted on national television?!"

"So who are the Honchkrow gang?" I rebutted. The hybrid gang was notorious for their nearly unstoppable crimes, supplemented in no small part by their dark and mysterious powers. The police has offered tens of thousands of dollars if anyone can provide information or equipment leading to their arrest. The Plasmid Foundation was easily of the police's biggest sources of both, I realized.

"Hybrids who had no choice to but to resort to crime to stay alive in the prejudice-loaded streets of Los Angeles."

"So you're condoning their actions?"

"No, but at least I'm smart enough to see the root of the—hey!" Kyu yelped in surprise as Matthew teleported her between us and squeezed us both in a tight hug.

"Please stop shouting," his voice quivered with his head against Kyu's shoulder. "You're scaring me! Hybrids and humans can both be nice or mean, okay? And Kyu's kind of right, Eon. Pretending you're human now will just make you sad because you're not a human anymore. Can we all be friends again?"

I sighed. Our argument wasn't finished if the rage within me was indication, but Matthew's terrified expression was enough for me to call it off. "Okay, Matthew. I understand."

Kyu looked to me with an unwavering expression. "What are you, Eon?"

"I'm…" I decided to let go of that part of my identity. "I'm a Ninetales hybrid with silver fur and gold eyes," I admitted, more to myself than to her. "I was born a human, but now I'm not. I'm a hybrid from my paws to the tips of my ears."

Kyu's ice-cold stare melted as she saw my expression and realized I had lost everything I was before last night. "I'm sorry, Eon. I admit it: I _hate_ humans and I want nothing to do with them. Can you at least understand why my friend wanting to be human again would make me upset?"

"Yeah, I understand." I nodded.

Kyu sighed and rested her head in my chest fluff. I was glad she couldn't see my flustered expression from this angle. Kyu was… very attractive, I had to admit. Was it my new and annoyingly ubiquitous hybrid instincts loving her vulpine form? Or was it her energetic and playful personality that I couldn't get enough of? Gingerly petting the fur on the back of her head that was longer and styled like human hair, I concluded it was probably both.

"It's okay, Kyu," I spoke softly. "I'm sorry myself for resisting my new identity."

"No, you've done nothing wrong," she muttered as she sat upright once more. My heart sank as we separated. "I forced this change on you and I shouldn't push you to forget your life before it. I don't care what you think of yourself now or what you do about all this; that's your choice. But at the very least, can we put this whole quarrel behind us?"

I smiled and nodded. "Of course. But I _do_ want to accept myself as a hybrid, now."

"That's the spirit!" Kyu grinned and tapped me on my black fox nose.

From there, everything returned to normal. I loaded up on a few more slabs of beef for Kyu and myself, Matthew teleported another cooked fish to his tray and together we enjoyed our lunch. With but one blood-soaked piece of meat left, I sighed and layed back. I've never eaten four steaks in one meal before. I've never been able to eat much more than two, at that. My stomach bulged considerably before me, as did Kyu's, but I didn't feel all that bloated.

"What, did my stomach double in size when I got transformed?" I joked, rubbing my belly contently.

"Pretty much," Kyu replied. I looked up, curious. "Carnivores tend to have rather stretchy stomachs; after all, it's much easier to eat your kill in one sitting than to have to come back for it later when it's half-rotten. If you listen to your body, you'll notice you're not hungry all that often, but when you eat, you _eat_! I haven't eaten since lunch yesterday, and this should carry me to around dinner tomorrow, I think."

"Say, how's that innocent creature taste?" a voice sneered. I frowned and looked to my right to see a hybrid at least six foot six or larger glare at the pool of blood in my tray. The hybrid had a cream underside and a muscular body. His arms had some sort of green plating on the outer side while his fingers each grew wicked brown claws. Beneath his pointed, pink nose was a frown was surrounded by spiky white fur that led into a tussled fluff down his chest just a shade whiter than the rest of his fur. Like me, he wore no shirt. Unlike me, his state of undress was due to what was unmistakably a giant shell growing on his back. The shell appeared to be made of the same stuff chestnuts and acorns were. A smooth coating reflected the light from the chandeliers, and I could make out just lines running vertically down its length like a hardwood floor. It was primarily cream with green and red rings around its edges, while four massive spikes jutted from each of its corners, the two closer to his head a little larger than the two near his long, sweeping tail that was also plated like his arms.

Kyu growled at the hybrid. "Just go away, Bark. I'm sure these cows led a very happy and fulfilling life before I ate them as per the food chain."

"Right," Bark scoffed. "Nothing's more fulfilling than living your life in a cramped stall just waiting to get fat and die."

Kyu groaned and turned to me. "Eon, meet Bark the Chesnaught: champion of animal rights, environmentalism, and sheer stupidity."

"You wanna say that again, predator?" Bark commanded angrily. What a strange insult. Calling a human a predator would earn you more than a few raised eyebrows... but foxes _are_ predators, aren't they? Kyu and Matthew showed no sign of shock, though.

"Sure. You're stupid." Kyu replied calmly, though irritation was evident on her face. "I may not like the conditions most livestock is put through, but the fact remains that I'm hungry and I need meat to stay healthy. Besides, you know Darck only buys from the most humane farms."

"That's no excuse!" Bark spat. "Breeding and raising animals so you can dine in luxury? It's barbaric!"

"So what should I do, then… _prey_?" Kyu grinned wickedly.

Bark's eye twitched. "Stop indulging yourself with the blood of innocent creatures and eat eggs and insects instead. Better yet, go vegan. We Grass-types can supply all the produce you could ever want. You won't go hungry _and_ you can have the peace of mind that some poor animal didn't have to be mercilessly slaughtered for your lunch."

"No can do, you _nut_case!" I could literally feel heat radiate off of the fox-girl. "I'm going to eat what I want and nothing you can stop me!"

"Really? Then maybe I should _beat_ some sense into you!"

"Was that a challenge, nutcase?"

"That's right, hothead! You and me—we'll battle it out until someone falls unconscious. If I win you promise not to eat another animal again, sans insects."

"Heck no!" Kyu shouted. "I'm not betting my entire diet on a tree-hugging simpleton who can't see past his own muzzle!"

"Oh, that's it!" Bark roared. "I've had it with you, predator! I don't even need to put anything on the line; beating you senseless will be reward enough."

"Kyu, what are you doing?" I spoke up, concerned. "Won't fighting get you in trouble?"

"If you fight on an approved field, you have someone to carry your sorry bum to the Healing Machines after, and both parties agree beforehand it's totally fine," Kyu replied. "Besides, it's easy to see it as a sparring match for self-defense training regardless of its motives. Now, c'mon. I want you guys to watch me floor this walking acorn. Matthew, can you teleport us to the campus park by a battlefield?"

"Sure, Kyu." He seemed a little shaken by the argument, but nevertheless we found ourselves in the sun once again. With a curt nod, the two opponents moved to opposite sides of the battlefield, an innocuous patch of grass marked only with lines creating a box about fifty feet wide and one hundred feet long, with a line dividing it into two squares to mark their sides of the field.

"Why are you helping her?" I muttered to Matthew. "If an argument scared you, why isn't this?"

"It's how things work at this school," Matthew explained in a hushed voice. "Arguments lead to everyone feeling sad. Fighting is fun. Usually you just enjoy yourself so much you can both say sorry afterwards." He summoned a bubble to sit on and smiled at me. "So sit back and watch! This'll be fun!"

I got the bubble Matthew gave me earlier and focused on expanding it large enough to sit on comfortably. Looking up, I watched Kyu and Bark take fighting stances. Some part of me grew nauseous. I didn't want to see Kyu get hurt.

"House rules?" Bark confirmed.

"Yeah. Let's go!" Kyu cried.

The two lunged at each other, Kyu erupting in flames while thick, wicked thorns sprouted from beneath Bark's shell to encase his plated arms in a spiky shield. Shifting his stance, Bark put his thorned arms in front of his body for protection. Kyu quickly adjusted her charge and leaped into the air onto Bark's back where fire began to pool in her maw. Just as a stream of fire blasted toward the Chesnaught, Bark tilted and whacked Kyu off with a heavy arm, tearing through her skin to leave a streak of blood and tufts of golden fur on the thorns. I grew enraged that Kyu was hurt, but I knew better than to interfere… I hoped.

Kyu winced, feeling the lacerations on her side, before standing upright and grinning. Bark ponderously stalked towards her, and in response Kyu exhaled a flamethrower directly at him. Bark immediately threw his arms up to deflect the fire. Distracted by the attack, he allowed Kyu to slip beside him and between his shell and arms. Bark looked down just in time for a kick to knock his chin back up and another flamethrower to burn his fragile front.

Bark collided with the ground on his back. For a brief moment I wondered if he'd be stuck upside down like a beetle, but my musings were cut short as he flipped over to land on his feet and face Kyu with a scorched scowl. Green light emitted from his thick arms as the grass beneath them turned hostile to his vulpine opponent. They whipped at her paws and legs, leaving behind small cuts that nevertheless accumulated and began to bleed. Kyu attempted to jump away from the dangerous foliage only for Bark to direct the plants to tie themselves around Kyu's ankle and cause her to stumble.

Kyu turned to see a clawed hand whip toward her side. She must have known it was hopeless to dodge, so she quickly took aim and spat up a dazzling ball of fire that exploded against Bark's chest. Bark was sent flying backward, but not before he had hooked his claws into Kyu and threw her into the air with him.

The two tumbled to the ground beside one another. Bark may have been nimble for his size, but Kyu was still more agile. She quickly scrambled to her feet just moments before Bark did the same, which was more than enough time to take a shot at Bark's already burned chest with another stream of fire. Bark retaliated by swiping a plated arm at her and forcing her back.

Kyu winced as she walked on bloody paws; the grass had left its mark. To prevent another such attack, she exhaled a stream of fire at her feet, quickly engulfing the field in a raging fire. Rather than prevent her attack, the Chesnaught spread his arms out wide to… expose as much of himself as possible, for some reason. He began to glow with a soft, golden light that started to heal the burns Kyu had left. Considering his affinity with plants... could he be photosynthesizing?

Once the grassy field within the boundaries of Kyu's side was blackened and charred, Kyu wrapped her body in flames and charged. In repetition of their first scuffle, huge thorns grew from the shell to protect Bark from attack. Kyu suddenly stopped before her opponent. The battlefield was quiet for a moment, Kyu not daring to attack and Bark not daring to break his defense.

Suddenly, Kyu's eyes flashed a bright red and Bark shuddered. The Grass-type bulwark began to shakily move one of his arms away to expose his body once again, but this time he wasn't healing himself. It seemed extremely hesitant, as if he didn't want to... Did he? Kyu's eyes flashed again and Bark lifted the other arm out of the way. With a feeling that was three parts impressed and one part horrified, I reasoned that she was controlling him.

My suspicions were all but confirmed as she slid under him. The moment she moved on her own, Bark's heavy hands snapped closed with her inside the shield he made. He pulled his hands closer in an attempt to crush her in a lethal hug, only for fire to explode out from the cracks in his defense. Bark continued his constriction for a few more seconds, steadfastly enduring the raging fire, before he shouted in pain and let Kyu go. Kyu gasped for air, wincing each time her lungs were full while Bark had to close one eye from the burns that now scarred his face.

I grew worried. "We should stop this, Matthew. I think Kyu's broken a rib with how she's breathing."

I moved to stand but Matthew called out, "Wait! Don't you remember the Healing Machines? All of this, burns, scars, cuts, and broken bones… we can just heal them right off! Let Kyu fight. She likes it! Bark, too. You may not see it, but they're both having the time of their life!"

I looked closer at the fox-girl. Sure enough, there was a glint in her eye and a upward tug at her cheek. She was in pain, yes, but clearly she was exhilarated from the challenge and not at all afraid. I returned to my bubble-seat, yet anxiety still twisted my heart.

As the two gasped for breath, Bark began to glow with the healing light from before. Kyu choked out, "Oh, no you don't!" before dashing towards him with a speed I wouldn't have expected from someone so injured. Bark brought his hands closer together as Kyu prepared a flamethrower, but the heavy burns all along them proved too painful and he flinched instead. That amount of hesitation was all it took for Kyu to bathe him in flames.

With a heavy thud, Bark collapsed to the ground and did not move.

I sighed and started breathing normally again. It was over… and Kyu had won! The two had sustained serious injury, though. Kyu's legs were now soaked in blood and her side had four wide gashes in it. She staggered faintly. Bark in turn was covered in heavy third-degree burns from his legs to his head, some of which revealed raw and bleeding muscle beneath.

"M-Matthew…" Kyu gasped, collapsing to the ground to sit somewhat upright, "could you…" With a sigh she collapsed unceremoniously on her belly. She seemed to still be conscious, if just barely. She gave us a half-pleading, half-expectant look with those deep scarlet eyes.

Matthew nodded and the four of us were in a stark, white, air-conditioned room, a pleasant change from the September heat. A large bed around eight feet long and three feet wide took up most of the room with various machines and wires hooked up to it. A large ring with black, rounded glass on the inside surrounded the head of the bed, attached on wheels to either side of the bed.

"This is a Healing Machine," Matthew explained quietly in respect for our injured friends. "Lay on the bed for a few minutes and you'll feel right as rain!"

I nodded and quickly stepped towards Kyu with my claws clicking against the tile. I gingerly slipped my hands under her, prompting her to groan, "I'm fine, I'm fine… Just… lemme take a moment to catch my breath..." Despite her casual tone, her eyes were unfocused and her breath shallow. Blood soaked into the fur on my hands.

"You've been through enough," I shook my head. "Don't worry; I'll be gentle." I slowly lifted her, doing my best to avoid her injuries and keep her level to move as little of her as possible. My heart pounded as I realized I was carrying the object of my affection. I wanted so desperately to just wrap her in another tail-filled hug, but with her broken body I dared not touch her any more than I had to. I softly laid her to rest on the cushioned bed.

"So what now?" I asked, looking to Matthew. In response the floating cat hybrid made his way around the bed to a control panel. It was clearly labeled, with a dial with settings from "Minor Injuries" to "Life-Threatening" and a simple on/off switch. Matthew set the dial to "Significant", which thankfully was a number of settings from "Life-Threatening", and switched the machine on.

A low, gentle humming filled the room. Kyu sighed and seemed to relax as the metal ring slowly passed around her, prompting Matthew to smile and turn to me. "Just give her a few minutes—the device put her to sleep and she'll wake up when she's all better. Now I'm going to make sure Bark gets better, too. Can you promise me you'll keep Kyu company?"

I nodded perhaps a little too quickly.

"Good!" my Mew hybrid friend replied before he and Bark vanished, leaving me alone with… Kyu.

I took a seat and watched her as every trace of injury was erased, from the vanishing cuts on her legs to the tissue in her side stitching back together seamlessly. My mind grew hazy and pleasantly light, lost in her sleeping beauty and natural grace once any trace of injury had been erased from the outside. In almost no time at all, it felt, the machine died down and she stirred, snapping me out of my infatuated stupor.

"How do you feel?" I asked quietly.

In response Kyu laughed and nimbly jumped out of the bed, standing upright without a hint of injury. "I feel great, thanks for asking! So what did you think of my battle?" She grinned proudly at her victory.

"It was scary, honestly. I didn't like seeing you get hurt so much," I admitted.

"Aww, Eon," Kyu gave a bittersweet smile. "You knew I'd be just fine, didn't ya?"

I shrugged. "I guess. I think some part of me couldn't believe it until I saw you recover."

She slipped into the chair beside me, every last modicum of her energy and agility fully restored. "Well, now that I am fully recovered, what did you think of everything else?"

"It was exhilarating to watch," I revealed. "Both of you used so many different techniques and strategies and did so many things to stop your opponent's. I don't think I'll ever stand a chance against any of you."

"Aw, I know you will! Just make sure you practice a lot in the Fire Gym, okay?"

I nodded in response, although I still doubted my own abilities.

"Well, then, let's go! I'm gonna go get cleaned up and then we can hit the gym." Kyu planned, grabbing my hand in her own and yanking me out the door. I grinned to myself at her touch.

We were obstructed by a thick-shelled Chesnaught lumbering out of his own room. The recovered Bark looked over his shoulder at us, turned, and gave Kyu a long stare. His eyes still retained that fury from the cafeteria, but it was hidden behind what was unmistakably a certain respect for Kyu. Looking to the Ninetales, her own eyes were merry, betraying only the faintest hint of irritation.

After a brief silence, Bark spoke reverently, "You did good today."

"Thank you," Kyu replied respectfully. "You, too."

Another pause followed. Bark finally stated, "I stand by what I said before."

"As do I."

Bark nodded. "Fine. See you later." He turned his back to us, his tail waving slowly as he walked away.

Kyu smiled back at him. "Goodbye, Bark."


	6. Chapter 6 - Hit the Gyms

Chapter Six: Hit the Gyms

Kyu was all fired up- literally. Little flames danced on her tails as she skipped merrily through that incredibly long hallway, eventually stopping at a rough, heavy, metal door with a little plaque beside it simply reading "FIRE GYM".

...After all the grandiose buildings I had seen in this school, this was sort of underwhelming.

That disappointment was quickly swept away as Kyu pushed the door open. For a rough idea of what it was like, take your school gymnasium. Now make it four times bigger and twice as high. For decoration build it out of polished stone and bricks, add a couple hundred hybrids, set most of them on fire, and heat the air to a balmy one hundred and fifty degrees Fahrenheit, according to the huge thermostat on the left wall.

"Kyu!" a voice shouted. From its pitch and familiarity I assumed it was Matthew, but to my surprise an entirely different hybrid zipped in front of us. He wore a simple orange T-shirt and gym shorts over a coating of light brown fur. His enormous, triangular orange ears put him a foot taller than me, but without those… he was a bit on the short side.

A hint of jealousy flared as Kyu gave the hybrid a hug. "Vulcan, I want you to meet Eon. Eon, this is Vulcan, the Fire Gym Leader."

"Leader?" I questioned. "He can't be older than fourteen!"

Kyu's eyes flashed in fear, but the words had already left my mouth. Vulcan scowled and flew up in my face. "You wanna say that again?"

"I said you look fourteen," I repeated, jerking back. "I'm sorry; how old are you?"

"I'm twenty-two, for your information! It's not _my_ fault I sound prepubescent; that's just how a Victini sounds! Guess I can't blame ya…" He suddenly grinned and gave me a thumbs-up. "You're looking at the one and only of my kind!"

"Like Matthew?"

"That cat's no Victini!" Vulcan scoffed indignantly.

"No, I mean he's the only Mew in the world, right?"

"Yeah, I guess," Vulcan shrugged. "Still no Victini, though. You know I'm also the world's first perpetual energy device?"

Kyu chuckled, "He's not lying. He's pretty much an Aura power plant; getting a pat on the back from him is like taking a shot of espresso. How about you show him, Vulcan?" Kyu bumped him on the shoulder. Vulcan made a grandiose display of himself brandishing his orange-furred finger before letting it descend on my shoulder.

In an instant my fur stood on end all over my body and my heart started racing. I felt so full of energy! I could do anything! I jumped high in the air with a cheer, hanging a good ten feet above my friends before I landed on the ground with an unceremonious thud. Despite my long fall I felt fine, if a bit embarrassed.

Kyu helped me to my feet and smiled apologetically at Vulcan. "He's kinda new here. Do you think you could give him a hand? You know, show him all that a trained Fire-type can do?" I couldn't help but notice she went out of her way to say I wasn't a hybrid before yesterday night.

Vulcan didn't seem to notice her deception, instead grabbing my arm (this time without charging me like a battery) and yanking me across the room. His flight was fast enough that I felt my arm was going to tear off, but quick enough that I could barely register the thought before we came to a halt before a sort of training station with bags full of flammable materials of all sorts, ranging from thick, sturdy logs to piles of dried leaves.

"This is where we practice fire eating," Vulcan explained.

"That thing where a person swallows a flame to put it out?"

"Yes, exactly!" Vulcan replied. "But, well…" he chuckled. "We hybrids here at Johiko Darck's Hybrid Academy have our own little twist on it." He gestured with a hand to psychically cause the bag of dried leaves to spill its contents, creating a small pile of dried foliage on the floor. With a pointed finger the edge of the pile burst into flames and the conflagration quickly spread. Before it reached the middle of the pile, though, Vulcan took a deep breath, somehow pulling the fire out of the leaves and down his throat. He exhaled a small plume of smoke and smiled contently. I brushed through the charred leaves, finding the temperature uniform; he had pulled out every last bit of heat from the fire.

"Awesome, right?" Vulcan grinned. "This skill is essential for staying out of trouble; if a fire starts, just suck it right up! You turn the fire into Aura at that-not too useful for me, but you regular Fire-types can find it extremely helpful."

"What is this 'Aura' anyway?" I inquired. "You guys keep talking about it but I never really got to hear what it is!"

"Really? I know you're new here, but you can't be that clueless!" Vulcan chuckled. "Ah, sorry. I guess I can explain. So, Aura is, in fact, that life energy hippies and monks keep talking about. It fills all living creatures and gives them some sense of will- more Aura, more freedom of choice to act on something beyond just instinct. As you can imagine, humans are pretty full of Aura and have just enough sense to notice it with practice, but to think they can use it to do anything mystical is pretty laughable if you ask me."

"So hybrids…" I conjectured.

"Are so stuffed full of Aura that the very world around them bends to their will!" Vulcan laughed like a hammy supervillain. "Sure, you're more or less attuned to a certain Type, but that's a small price to pay to be able to summon fire with the snap of your fingers."

I smiled and nodded in agreement. After all, I couldn't summon anything at all just a couple days ago. I opened my maw to tell him, but I choked down the words in time and disguised it as coughing. Clearly Kyu didn't think it was smart to tell him my little secret. Maybe these hybrids would think less of me if they knew I was a human until yesterday?

A jolt on my arm snapped me out of my introspection as Vulcan charged me with Aura again. "Hey! Are you going to give it a try or not?" he demanded.

"Oh, sure," I replied hurriedly, standing beside the pile of leaves. "So I pull the fire out of this and work my way up?"

"Not quite; the leaves burn so fast and so quickly you have to be really quick to yank the fire out of it completely. With you, we'll start with a moderately sized stick so you only have to extinguish the tip. Once you can extinguish fire well enough, we'll move on to starting them more efficiently. And if all this seems beneath you, don't worry-just show me you know how to handle an out-of-control fire and we can move on."

I nodded again, this time standing before a bundle of sticks on a metal table. That made sense, I supposed; don't start a fire you can't contain and all that. "So how do I light this?" I asked, grabbing a stick from the pile. "Should I just give it a quick breath of fire?"

"Sure, why not? Although, Kyu liked to start it with her mind. Can you do that?"

"No," I shook my head in embarrassment. "I'm not even too sure how to breathe fire at that."

Vulcan appeared disconcerted. "What, were you born yesterday or something?"

Oh, the irony.

"Just… _want_ to. That's really all it takes. Aura manipulation is a lot of willpower, guided by training and practice." His tone suggested he was speaking to a small child, which irritated me, especially since he already sounded and acted younger than I did.

I'd show him, though. How hard could breathing fire be? Kyu and the others here in this gym make it look so easy. Gathering my thoughts, I took a deep breath and willed myself to exhale flames.

And flames did come. Small embers would be more accurate though, little sparks of fire that vanished as quickly as they appeared. My ears fell back in shame. Trying again, I managed to hack up a ball of fire that made its way to the stick only to vanish without even scorching the wood.

I turned, trying to think of some sort of excuse, but Vulcan's legitimately disgusted look stopped the words long before they reached my tongue.

As if on cue, Kyu arrived. "Hey, boys! How's the training coming?"

"Is Eon feeling okay?" Vulcan asked. "I haven't seen a flamethrower that bad since Blaze came in to train _after_ a twenty-four hour training marathon."

"Couldn't you have just recharged them like you did me?" I questioned.

"I did, in fact! But after all that training the day before he was half-delirious and forgot to ask. Anyway, are _you _doing alright, buddy? I know I already recharged you, so are you sick or something?"

"No, I feel just fine," I replied.

"Then what's with your awful flamethrower?" He narrowed his eyes.

"Let's just say he really didn't have much in the way of opportunities to train in his childhood," Kyu spoke carefully, her eyes flashing scarlet barely long enough for me to notice.

Vulcan nodded soberly in response and didn't press the issue, instead saying, "Well, I'll leave him to you in that case. Train him up quick, okay?"

A wicked grin tugged at Kyu's cheek, but she responded cheerfully, "Sure, Vulcan! He'll be up to snuff in no time!"

"Did you do that thing again? Like when you controlled Bark?" I asked Kyu quietly as Vulcan darted off.

"It was more a suggestion than a possession," she explained. "I just needed to nudge his mind away from the touchy subject of your… transformation. A lot of hybrids, Vulcan included, have had some pretty bad experiences with humans. If they knew you used to be one, I'm worried they'd shun you for it."

"Matthew and Professor Darck seemed pretty okay with it," I noted.

"Darck's more likely to throw the whole school than throw out a young hybrid like you regardless of how you came to be. And Matthew, well, I'm not sure what his deal is. He's supernaturally cheerful or something; if he's had any negative experiences at all, he certainly hasn't brought it up, Of all the Psychics I could have brought to take you to here, I figured he was the safest bet."

I nodded in understanding and turned back to the wood. "So why can't I manage even a little fire?" I asked dejectedly.

"My best guess is that you're more or less a young child when it comes to being a hybrid. Aside from your lack of familiarity with Fire Aura, you still try to act human, what with your clumsy gait and your tendency to ignore all the smells and sounds around you."

"I've been using my senses well enough," I grumbled.

"Clearly not. Your ears don't twitch at faint sounds and you don't ever stop to focus on what you're smelling, clear signs that you're ignoring what's right in front of your nose-literally. But we can work on that later. Right now let's see if we can't get your Aura flowing the way it should."

Kyu pointed to my chest. "First of all, there's energy you can draw on everywhere. You inhale it with your breath, you pump it with your heart, and it becomes Aura and radiates out to your whole body from there. By visualizing this energy and willing it to become fire, well, it becomes fire!"

"So I just imagine breathing out this energy and turning it into fire?"

A disconcerted look not too different from Vulcan's flashed across her face only to vanish shortly thereafter. "Not… exactly... Okay, I want you to close your eyes and just… _feel_. Try to sense the Aura burning in your body like a big blue flame. Can you do that?"

My eyes were already shut. I did my absolute best to focus, clearing my mind as best I could to visualize this Aura. Sure enough, I felt a sort of power welling inside me. With each breath I drew this white glowing energy into me, and each sigh funneled it to my heart where it turned a deep blue and flooded my body.

"Feel anything?" Kyu asked quietly.

"Yeah, I do," I replied. Maybe catching up wouldn't be so bad.

"Alright, now, try to breath fire. Take a deep breath, this time pulling in the Aura you have stockpiled in your body. If you do it right you should feel it build up in your lungs."

I complied, taking a deep breath as I willed the Aura within me to flow to my lungs. To my surprise, I physically felt the energy as it swelled within me. Under the instinct that I was choking, I coughed in an attempt to clear my airways. To my frustration, I couldn't even warrant a spark. "This is impossible," I muttered.

"Not impossible," Kyu corrected. "Just difficult for someone who's been an ordinary human their whole life. Try again, but this time don't choke on your own Aura. Exhale it like you would your breath and let it become fire as it passes over your tongue.

I nodded and took a steadying breath. Then, once more, I pulled Aura from my body into my lungs, willing with all my might not to cough it up again. Instead, I did my best to gently exhale, visualizing it turning to fire in my mouth.

And burn it did. I exhaled a beautiful stream of bright yellow fire two feet long. All too soon, however, my built up Aura depleted and the flame died out. But I was ecstatic. I breathed fire!

My tails started wagging with excitement, prompting Kyu to giggle. "Awesome, huh? Now let's see you do it again, but faster. You don't have nearly that long to gather Aura in the middle of battle, you know."

In response I tried to repeat the process, only to find I couldn't pull in my Aura. I tried again, once more without success. I did exactly what Kyu said over and over, but no matter how many times I tried my power simply wouldn't move. My tails fell. "It's not working," I admitted, annoyed that I was failing and ashamed that I was failing in front of Kyu.

"You're getting all frazzled," Kyu explained. "You're letting your emotions obstruct your thinking. Having emotion is normal and can be useful, but it has to be directed. Stop worrying about whether or not it'll work and mentally panicking. Instead, focus that fear into resolve. Use it to drive you to try harder. Fear itself, contrary to popular belief, is not something to be afraid of- it's something to manipulate and use like a tool. Master your emotions and you can master your Aura. So take a moment, think about the best course of action, and imagine your emotions as weapons or tools implement that plan."

That was… astonishingly good advice. I took a moment to apply her words. If I'm so frustrated with myself that I can't get my Aura under control, then the best course of action would be to practice until I can. To control my Aura, I need all my attention on the Aura itself, which means I have no room to worry about whether or not I can pull it off. I closed my eyes and imagined my frustration and shame being focused into a laser to guide my Aura. Maybe it was a weird metaphor, but the mere idea of having control over my fear was enough to let me focus again. I took a deep breath...

And exhaled another jet of fire.

Kyu clapped for me as I grinned. This was working! "Where'd you come up with that?" I turned to my vulpine mentor. "That was amazing advice!"

Kyu chuckled. "You'll have to thank Professor Darck, then. He taught me that little trick when I was having trouble with some really advanced fire control."

I pointed my nose up repeated the process once more for good measure, this time focusing my excitement into a fuel for my fire. This was my best fire yet, a burst of flames that made it three feet above me. Suddenly I felt very weak.

As I collapsed on my rear, exhausted, Kyu explained, "You didn't think we got Aura for free, did you? Yeah, a lot of our energy comes from around us, but as long as you're not Vulcan it still takes quite a bit of your body's natural energy-you know, ATP, glucose, whatever-to turn it into useful Aura. Luckily, the more you practice the more Aura you can use without getting exhausted." She offered a hand that I took, our paw pads scratching against each other as she lifted me up. "But don't you quit on me yet! We've got a lot of training left to do!"

I grimaced at Kyu and she clapped me on the shoulder. "If you get too tired I'll just breathe some fire on you. You'll naturally absorb it and make Aura out of it more or less for free. That or get Vulcan to help you out."

I sighed and nodded, preparing myself for the training ahead. Suddenly something that had been vaguely nagging at me came into clarity. "Wait… why don't our clothes burn when they come into fire?"

"Simple. Your body absorbs all the heat long before it actually burns anything on your person."

That made sense. I returned to the task at hand. "So what's first?"

First, it turned out, was to finally learn how to swallow fire. I was steadily getting better at breathing flames, so igniting my stick was simple. The challenge came in when I was told to inhale such that I pulled the heat out of the little flaming tip into my body to make into Aura. This, of course, made no sense to an human… er, former human like me, but with some coaching I managed to… make the flame bend towards me. It was progress, at least.

Kyu seemed challenged herself. On more than one occasion she apologized for being unclear, citing that she was so used to doing these sorts of things that teaching it didn't exactly come naturally. That hurt my pride a little, hearing that I couldn't manage even the most basic of techniques, but I knew better than to complain. If I wanted to get on par with Kyu, I'd have to start with the basics, even if it did mean learning lessons meant for children.

Over time I started to grasp the idea of Aura and what it meant for a Fire-type like me. With Kyu's instruction I developed a sort of affinity for fire. It became almost like an extension of my body- where there was fire, I could manipulate it… kinda. It was all very confusing for both of us, Kyu doing her best to translate the concept into terms an ex-human could understand while I did my best to grasp it. On many occasions I got discouraged, but Kyu's pep talks always brought me back around eventually. And, of course, there were few things more beautiful than to see her smile at my success.

After a couple hours of headaches and more than a few burned out sticks, I finally understood. It's… how do I put this… When I focus on something. my Aura gets attached to it. Not directly with a cord of energy or something, but more like tuning two walkie-talkies to the same frequency. The point is that if I have an affinity for that thing -which for a Fire-type like me generally means a flame of some sort- I can… add it to my Aura in a way. Then, using that same "willing" technique, if I hold enough focus on the object I can manipulate it like I could my own Aura, moving it and changing it how I see fit.

Kyu also mentioned that as Ninetales we had the uncommon ability to create fire where we wanted to, regardless of what we were looking at. She also admitted that it was a relatively difficult technique and that I should focus on the basics first.

What this meant for my fire eating is that I could use this mindset to focus on that little flame and use my breath to finally pull it in and extinguish my stick. Kyu felt the now cold (well, as cold as a stick can get in room that was a consistent one hundred and fifty degrees) stick and looked to me with a heart-melting gaze of approval.

"Well done, Eon!" she spoke, pride dripping from every word. "You're learning so fast! Pretty soon I can start teaching you more advanced techniques!"

"I'm looking forward to it," I replied, stretching my arms over my head. This was tiring stuff, even if most of it was mental training. "So what's next?"

"Well, as I'm sure Vulcan told you, we've got to make sure your ability to put out fire stays ahead of your ability to make it." She grabbed a few sticks that seemed to all spontaneously ignite at their tips. "Put this out for me, will you?"

The Aura I gathered from consuming the fire helped to stave off my exhaustion, but as Kyu had me extinguish larger and larger fires, I grew more and more tired. As I was about to collapse and call it quits, an unfamiliar hand touched my back just below my mane of hair. Instantly I felt refreshed at Vulcan's rejuvinating touch, and an instant later annoyed.

"What took you so long?" I demanded, looking behind me to find that Vulcan had already vanished to who-knows-where.

"In the heat of battle you're not going to have Vulcan to fix you up when you feel tired. Working through the fatigue is as much a part of your training as working on your fire breath."

"That makes sense," I replied, standing upright as I swallowed the fire from the sticks in Kyu's hand. "Speaking of battle, I think I'd like to give it a try in the Fall Battle Tournament," I said, remembering the flyer for it in the long hallway. "Seeing you and Bark duke it out was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen, and if battling is such a big part of hybrid culture like you say, well, I'd better sign up!"

"You… you want to join the tournament?" Kyu clarified. Her worried tone confused me.

"I'll be fine, Kyu!" I insisted. "Like you said to my mom, there's always the Healing Machines, right?"

"Right…" Kyu grimaced. "That's not exactly the problem, though."

"What do you mean?" I was growing concerned myself.

"Well…" Kyu sighed and was silent for a moment. "Let me put it this way: most teams in our age group who want a Fire-type use a certain test to gauge your potential. If you can't pass it they almost certainly won't consider you."

"Well, what is it?" I said, growing anxious. It couldn't be that bad, could it?

"Breathe or otherwise produce a ten-foot long flame for a full thirty seconds," she spoke quickly as if the words were dirt she had to get off her tongue. She looked at me and my despondent expression, her own ears falling back in sympathy.

"Ten feet?" I repeated, feeling defeated. "I can barely manage three without feeling exhausted."

"And that's what training is for," Kyu continued in a more subdued tone. "I know it seems hard-"

"Try impossible," I groaned.

"I know it seems impossible," she repeated, "but I know you can do it."

I interpreted her look immediately: it was the same expression from when she promised I would become human again. "It's hopeless, isn't it?" I muttered.

"No, it's not," Kyu's brow furrowed and she stood a little straighter. "Already you've made incredible progress," she spoke as if this was news to her. "While most hybrids figured out what you learned by the age of nine," I sighed in defeat, but Kyu pressed on, growing excited, "That means it took them _nine years_ to understand what you picked up in a few hours!"

That made my ears perk. She continued, "Now, I don't know if this means you're a complete prodigy or if you're just readily adapting to what you should have been capable of by now, but the point is that with enough hard work, I'm going to bet you can catch up by the time sign-ups close!"

"Which is when, exactly?" I asked.

"Early November, if I remember correctly."

Early November. It was the beginning of September now, so that gave me two months to catch up to hybrids that have been training for this sort of thing for years.

"It's a longshot," Kyu admitted, "but would you rather just sit back and watch as everyone but you prepares to fight or would you rather get out there and give it your best shot?"

"I'm going to train," I resolved. "I'll put everything I've got into getting stronger. And if I don't make it… well, there's the Spring Tournament, I guess."

"That's right!" Kyu smiled. She opened her mouth to continue, but a bell sounding similar to the one that announced lunch rang through the gym. Surprisingly, I didn't feel the least bit hungry.

"I'm going to keep training," I decided, "I'm not hungry."

"Carnivore stomachs rule, don't they?" Kyu grinned, eyeing one of the larger logs on the table. Like her sticks before, a blue fire erupted from it before returning to a more ordinary orange shade.

She began to warn about the difficulty of a log this size, but in one quick gasp I had already extinguished it.


	7. Chapter 7 - Worth Fighting For

Chapter Seven: Worth Fighting For

An electronic lock disengaged as I slid in my keycard, opening Room 038. Inside I came across a room nearly identical to the one Professor Darck showed me. Polished grey stone carved with flame designs supported the walls, and smooth, cool tile clacked beneath my claws. Right in front of me was a short hallway leading into a living room, its table carrying several neat stacks of papers with all sorts of strange diagrams and scribblings. To the right was a kitchenette, scrubbed clean aside from a plate with a few dried crumbs on the counter. The room on the far side of the dorm was equipped with a TV and sofa, although the couch had been pushed against the wall and the dusty TV looked like it had never been touched.

I collapsed into the nearest chair, feeling delightfully exhausted from such a hard workout. Even though Vulcan had refreshed me as I left the gym, I still felt rather fatigued. Kyu told me that was because there were more ways your body got tired that just a lack of energy, which I supposed made sense–all the Aura in the world couldn't clean up the refuse my muscles built up… probably. I still knew next to nothing about Aura.

I picked up on the sound of scribbling from the room to my left. Cincci had also told me that I had a Fire-type for a roommate, though he returned to his dusting before I could ask anything else. Curious, I stepped as softly as I could into the room. Beside the bed was a desk, and at the desk was a somewhat short, orange-red hybrid. A tail nearly as large as his whole body, cream colored and shaped like a candle flame, trailed behind him on the floor, while a similarly colored mane around his neck obscured his head from view. However, I could still see his tall, thin, diamond shaped ears as they perked up in response to my approach.

The hybrid turned to face me with expressionless, dark blue eyes and a short, canine muzzle. "I suppose you are my new roommate?" he asked in a deadpan voice.

I nodded and extended a hand. "I'm Eon. It's nice to meet you!"

"Flare," he replied curtly. He seemed to loosely grip my hand just long enough to avoid being impolite before returning to his desk. I looked over him to see him poring over a textbook on what I guessed was quantum physics from the diagrams of atoms and subatomic particles. The paper on his right contained equations involving symbols I had never seen before.

He turned to me, annoyed. "Please don't tell me you're going to make a habit out of looking over my shoulder," he grumbled.

I shook my head, my mane of hair whipping back and forth. "Oh, no, of course not. I was just curious what you were studying."

"Very experimental and cutting edge research," he replied, a hint of emotion finally entering his voice. "I'm trying to reconcile quantum mechanics with the concept of Aura. General relativity will have to wait, unfortunately."

"You're trying to reconcile… Wait, what?" I asked, baffled.

His ear twitched in a show of irritation. "Nobody knows how Aura works. Nobody. Even most scientists call it magic and try to forget it exists. But it does and it's important. Many physicists have tried and continue to fail to this day to unify general relativity and quantum mechanics, but none of them have had the resources or inclination to attempt to factor in Aura; that's like trying to explain fusion without the strong nuclear force. As a hybrid with access to a generous amount of funding courtesy of our Headmaster, I _can_ use Aura in my calculations. And I very much intend to."

I took a moment to figure out what on earth he was saying. Once his words registered, my eyes widened. "Wait... so you're trying to solve the Theory of Everything?"

"Yes." There wasn't an ounce of pride in his reply. If anything, he seemed to be annoyed that I asked.

"How old are you again?" I probed.

He turned back to his textbook. "Sixteen. Now if you can't help me, go away; your room's opposite mine." Sixteen. This hybrid was sixteen and attempting to solve the Theory of Everything. I didn't even know anything about the concept beyond it being the uber-question of physics.

So to recap I've met a fox-girl with nine tails who can turn humans into hybrids, a floating psychic cat who treats everything like a game and might be immortal, a three hundred year old psychic dragon-bird-dolphin hybrid who apparently has enough money to fund a school of five thousand students and enough power to personally tutor all of them, a mouse hybrid with an unparalleled ability to perform housekeeping, another psychic cat that knows what I'll do before I know it myself, a seven-foot-tall chipmunk with the defensive capabilities of a tank, a flying fire rabbit who produces an unlimited amount of energy, and now a sixteen-year-old canine hybrid who is earnestly trying to formulate the literal Theory of Everything.

And all in one day.

Shaking my head at the absurdity of it all, I did as I was asked and went into my own room. I opened the door, expecting to find everything blanketed in dust from months or years of disuse, but to my surprise everything was spic and span. I had a feeling a certain mousey neat-freak prepared my room for me while I was away; I made a mental note to thank him the next time I saw him.

Most of my room was to my left, including a dresser and my bed, and my closet was a little to my right. Directly ahead was the open door to the bathroom, which I proceeded to explore. Just like the dorm I had sampled this morning, my bathroom came equipped with the fire bath and fan room. Now very curious, I wondered what standing in flames atop hot coals would feel like now that I was a hybrid… Well, no time like the present to find out.

Just as I was reaching to remove my jeans, a knocking sounded from the front door. The knocking continued as I made my way to the front door, only letting up a few moments _after_ I had swung it open.

Matthew was standing, er, floating before me with my suitcases and backpacks all around him. Immediately he launched into an explanation, "Sorry I didn't get here sooner! I was trying to teleport right into your room for like five minutes and just getting a headache from it all until my best friend and roommate Vee told me all the rooms have wards against teleportation too along with their regular enchantments against intruders so I teleported right outside instead." A moment of awkward silence passed. I coughed.

Matthew picked up the conversation. "So I see you're rooming with Flare! That's cool! Flare's really smart. He even knows things that I don't, and we're the same age!"

"Not one for conversation, though," I chuckled.

"Yeah, he never wants to play, which is weird. Whenever we do talk it's always about his research when he wants my help with something, which I guess is fun."

So not one, but two teens I knew personally had the capacity to solve impossibly complex physics questions. After all that had happened today, this didn't surprise me.

After a moment I grinned as an idea sprang to mind. "Next time he wants your help with something, make him promise to hang out with you afterwards in exchange."

"That's a great idea!" Matthew eyes widened. "I finally get to see how much his physics studies help him in Mario Kart!" I couldn't help but laugh at that.

The bags rose up into the air of their own accord as Matthew guided them all inside, floating straight to my room without stopping to ask. I walked after him to see him gently lay my bags at the foot of my bed and turn to me.

"So do _you_ want to play video games with me?" he asked, hopeful.

I let out a long sigh. "Listen, Matthew, I've had a really long day. Between…" I let my voice drop to a whisper and hoped Matthew had the sense to do the same. "Between me becoming a hybrid, visiting this school for the first time, working out at the Fire Gym, and all the other crazy things that happened today and last night, I'm completely exhausted. Besides, my classes start tomorrow and I'm going to need all the rest I can get."

"Oh, well, okay!" Matthew replied in what I guessed was the softest voice he could manage. "See you tomorrow, then!"

"Good night, Matthew." No sooner had I said the words than the Mew vanished. Stretching myself from my fingers overhead to the tips of all my tails, I did my best to relax. I decided to take a shower and get myself to bed… except that now that I was a hybrid, I was going to take a fire bath instead, standing naked inside a roaring fire to clean my furry body. And as such my day got impossibly stranger.

Nevertheless, I got myself a change of clothes and locked my bathroom door. I removed my clothes and stepped into the small room carpeted in sweet-smelling logs, closing the glass door behind me and examining the room in greater detail. It was a little cramped, giving me just enough elbow room to feel comfortable, but it was certainly smaller than my bathtub at home.

The walls were made of hard granite that was cold to the touch. A wide shelf inset in the wall opposite me was stocked with all sorts of herbs and spices, the labels placed inside the glass likely to prevent them from burning off. Immediately the smell of rosemary caught my attention, reminding me fondly of Kyu... Some time later I snapped out of my daze and returned to my bath.

Some part of me was dead set against setting a fire with me directly beneath my feet, nagging at me to keep my flaming mouth shut so I don't burn myself, but I did my best to ignore it. My hands would have been horrible scorched from my training had I not been fireproof, right? Keeping this thought firmly in my mind, I pulled Aura into my lungs, looked down at my vulpine paws, and let loose a flamethrower.

A couple moments later I closed my maw to find the logs beneath me crackling pleasantly. The fire was warm and cozy, tendrils of heat rising from the wood to seep into my fur like a soft blanket of pure heat. The experience was so pleasant I relaxed entirely, slouching against the wall as heat flooded the room. Lazily I watched as smoke either rose up through a vent in the ceiling or embedded itself into my fur, nearly overwhelming me with a sweet, smoky aroma.

Speaking of aroma, I was reminded of my spice shelf. I looked over my selection carefully, giving each jar a good whiff in turn. Eventually I settled on a combination of thyme, mint, basil… and a pinch of rosemary, of course. I didn't need much either; a shake or two into the fire immediately filled the air with a sharp yet wonderful smell, and each new herb only improved on the combination of scents tossed around by the tongues of flame.

As the fire started to die down and just about everything (myself included) was covered in soot, I decided I was done. As I opened the door into the fan room, I made sure to pull on the chain Kyu had pointed out this morning. I immediately jerked my tails from the room as frigidly cold water fell on them from holes at the tops of the walls. That water was freezing! Colder than any water I had ever felt; far colder than snow at that! But clearly it wasn't icy... With a bit of a sinking feeling, I realized that it was room temperature water and my new Fire-type body just couldn't take it.

But there was nothing I could do. This is the lot I've been given; I might as well make the most of it. Shaking my tails free of any water that hadn't steamed off me by now, I immediately noticed the small, sleek, modern control panel on the wall composed a couple buttons to control wind speed and another to turn it on and off. Simple enough. Pushing the "on" switch and turning it up to a gusty twelve miles per hour, I sat on the grate as the fan beneath quickly and efficiently turned my coat from black to silver.

As I was angling myself to get rid of the last few patches of ash, my sensitive vulpine ears picked up on a frantic rapping on the front door. From the way it seemed to make the whole dorm shudder it seemed someone very badly wanted to get in. As I turned off the fan and started to get dressed again, the knocking only grew louder and more worried. Suddenly it was replaced by the sound of wood being smashed; apparently our friend had broken in, despite the wards on our room. That was a bad sign.

Before I could think up a suitable thing to shout at the intruder, the sound of shattering glass and clattering stone erupted from Flare's room. What was going on out there? I hurriedly finished dressing and ran out my door. The trespasser turned out to be hybrid with fluffy, pure white fur and blue claws. I couldn't see his face as he was running into Flare's room, but I noticed what was unmistakably a single scythe-shaped antler growing out the left side of his head to point straight upward. Fire immediately erupted from Flare's room as a small engine whined, the sound of crashing furniture clear signs that a fight had broken out.

I dashed in and caught a terrifying sight. Flare was grappling with a human near a gaping hole in his wall. The human was completely covered in a black suit, his face obscured by a dark helmet, and on his back was a still running jetpack attached to bat-like wings laced with glowing sky-blue lines. After seeing Kyu and Bark fight, how he was holding his own against a hybrid was beyond me. Nevertheless, when he took a flamethrower to the face and didn't even flinch, I got worried. The white-furred hybrid and I immediately attempted to join the fray.

Just before my unexpected partner reached Flare, a gas hissed out of the man's arm and my roommate stopped fighting back, slumping unconscious beneath him. My partner let out a defiant cry and swiped at the man as he turned, his claws glowing with a dark aura. He managed to make a pretty serious gash in the jetpack, causing me to hope all too soon that the man was grounded.

That moment of hesitation cost me dearly as the man nevertheless threw Flare over his back, strapped his arms to his wings, hopped out the hole where the window once was and took off into the night sky.

"Oh, no…" the remaining hybrid groaned in a soft voice as he slumped against the wall. "Oh, no, no, no, no, no… wait!" Suddenly perking up, he swung himself over the remaining wall and out of the room to look up at the sky.

Joining him in the night air, I looked up to just make out the man from the bands of light in his wings and the glow of fire from his jetpack. The gash in his machine must have been more serious than I thought, as the machine first sputtered, the man dropping a few feet, before it gave out entirely, forcing him to glide and slowly descend into the trees.

"We've got to go after him," I spoke, my voice sounding surprisingly resolved.

In response my friend nodded and dashed ahead across the parking lot with me close behind. The difference in our training was more than evident as he often had to stop to let me catch up. Every time he did, though, he seemed to grow more and more worried and frantic.

As we sprinted, the full moon providing plenty of light, I asked between gasps of breath, "Wait, how did you know Flare was going to be kidnapped?"

"I… I can sense the bad things about to happen to others around me. It's a trait unique to Absol like me." His voice, unhindered by his exertion, was somewhat subdued.

"So you know everything bad about to happen to everyone around you? Doesn't that get overwhelming?"

He whimpered and looked away. I felt guilty.

"Anyway, I'm so glad you came running," I tried to console him. "You were the only warning I got. I probably wouldn't have gotten out of my fire bath in time if you didn't hurry me along."

"Oh, you're welcome," he spoke graciously, though I had a sneaking feeling he was faking it.

"Couple more things." I continued. "First, how did you get into my room in the first place? I thought there were wards against that!"

"When I really need to help someone... I… I can do a lot…" He sounded strangely ashamed.

"And what happened back then when he flew off?" I questioned as we barreled into the forest. "You were so distraught only to cheer back up again."

"I was warned of the fear and dread he would feel once his jetpack broke," he spoke somberly. "He's scared of us."

While he seemed to shrink from guilt again, I only grew more determined. He was scared of us? Good. I'll show him exactly why he's right.

My nose picked up on a new smell, one of smoke and Flare's musk and exhaust, while my ears heard a soft crashing of water against rocks. It was faint, but I knew we were on the right track. I picked up the pace only to skid to a halt about a mile later on the banks of a large river blocking our path. I had feared as much, but I didn't expect a patch of rather violent rapids a good thirty feet across. I'd felt just a few minutes before what water did to me. But with no other way across in sight…

Even as my heart pounded in fear, I did my best to stay resolved. Live or die, I couldn't stand by and let Flare get kidnapped. Sure, I hardly knew him, but he was worth saving. Everyone was.

I scanned the rapids again. There was no easy way across, but more than a few rocks peeked out of the water. I took a moment to plan…

...It was a longshot, that much was certain.

I turned to the Absol. "If I jumped across here on those stones, can you tell if I'll make it?"

To my surprise, he nodded. "Yes, but… It's going to hurt. A lot. Please, just turn around. I can get him back on my own. Don't worry; nobody will blame you. There are very few Fire-types who would jump through rapids like these, especially one as inexperienced as you."

I felt a little better about myself. This hybrid was probably much more trained than I was, and he doesn't seem to share my weakness for water. He was right, after all–considering how risky it is normally to fall into rapids, even without my unfortunate typing it was suicide to try to cross.

I shook my head. What was I saying?! The Absol said exactly what I wanted to hear, but there was no way I was abandoning my mission now. No matter the cost to myself, I would rescue Flare. "A little pain won't stop me." I insisted.

"No, really!" the fluffy hybrid cried, fixing me with a desperate look. "You don't have to go through with this. I know I can get him back on my own. You don't have to put yourself through so much pain."

"I can't live with the thought that I walked away when someone needed me the most," I replied despite myself. Ignoring his pleas, I walked up to the edge of the water, little traces of foam stinging my paws and legs.

The rocks were angled, unstable, and likely very slippery. If I jumped wrong I would fall in the water, and… I shook my head, doing my best not to imagine what would happen, The last thing I needed was shot nerves. Besides, my companion said I would make it. He was right about everything else, so I had no reason to doubt him. Taking one last calming breath...

I jumped.

I landed on a wide stone, the water on its surface bursting to steam beneath my burning-hot paws as the river splashed up and around me. I felt like I was dropped into a meat cooler after being soaked to the bone, it was so cold. Acting quickly, I leaped to the next rock I could see only for my paw to slip on its slimy, angled top, causing me to smash my knee against the stone. I cried out in pain, both from the next splash of water that crashed over the rock and from my throbbing knee. But I couldn't give up yet.

Favoring my injured leg, I jumped over to the next rock, the smallest yet. Like before my leg slipped on its algae-covered surface, but this time my leg up to my shin was plunged underwater. Bright lights started dancing before my eyes with the intense pain.

Pulling myself up again, I looked to the next rock only to find it several feet away and absolutely tiny. There was no way I was making a jump that long and that accurate, especially with this overwhelming agony clouding my senses. This was a horrible idea...

My ears picked up on the soft sound of claws scratching against rock as the Absol skipped up towards me. To my surprise he jumped to the sharp spike of rock beside me, kicking off its side to land gracefully on the rock I was aiming for.

"Jump to me!" he called over the roaring water. "I'll catch you!"

"But what if you fall in?" I called back. "Even if you're not a Fire-type like me those rapids will still tear you apart!"

"Just trust me!" he insisted. "I'm very agile and strong! With my sharp claws I could easily hook myself to a rock and climb out, and that's if I fall in at all. But I know this will work! You can do this!"

First he was discouraging me when I didn't want to go and now he was egging me on once I had committed myself? Quite the sycophant, I thought bitterly.

But he was right; jumping to him, even if I knocked him overboard, was my only shot at rescuing Flare. Steeling myself, I kicked off from my rock to fly into his arms. The Absol caught me in a fluffy embrace, his claws digging into the smooth stone to keep us both stable.

"I'm not a sycophant," he whispered into my ear, sounding hurt. "I just want you to be happy."

That comment stunned me in a number of ways. First, he had known what I was thinking. Second, with his genuine tone and soft hug I couldn't help but forgive him. Finally, his last sentence: he wanted me to be happy. Was that just how he always spoke, or was it a confession of something… deeper? This would be a really awkward time for it if that was the case.

There would be time to ask him later. Looking ahead, there was just one more stone, blessedly wide and flat, before the edge of the river a short hop away. The two of us cleared the last obstacle effortlessly and took off running once more.

I did my best to block out the pain, but it was clear to both of us I was holding us back. A few minutes into our run and my companion extended a hand. "Come on; I'll carry you. You need your strength for the fight ahead."

As much as I hated to admit it, he was right. I was exhausted and even though he was a couple inches shorter than me he was clearly in much better physical condition. Once I was on his back he bolted ahead at a blindingly fast pace, whipping through the trees far faster than anyone I had met before today.

The smell we were tracking quickly grew stronger. In just a few minutes Hope skidded to a stop as our foe came into view. He turned on a dime, jerking back as he regarded us before dropping Flare and adopting a battle stance. I was unsure what to expect. He already wrestled Flare and withstood a direct flamethrower without looking any worse for wear, but I suspected that without the element of surprise and by avoiding that sleeping gas he would go down easily. As I halfway crouched in my own fighting stance, the human strapped his arms back into his wings.

That confused me. His jetpack was clearly broken; otherwise he would have taken off long ago. Then he crossed the wings over his body in what looked like a defensive position. Was it extremely durable or something? Either way, it won't do much good if I can get behind him, and his whole outfit didn't look too nimble. I began to charge…

Suddenly the edges of his wings flashed bright with that light-blue glow. As he yanked them back, a powerful gust of wind hurtled towards me. Seeing how it physically shredded the foliage between us, I had just enough time to throw my arms up in front of my face before my body was lightly cut by impossibly sharp winds. What on earth was he wearing?!

"Hey, buddy, do you have any idea what's going on with him?" I asked my soothsaying friend. "How is he controlling the wind like that?"

"It's like what a Flying-type does," a strained voice replied. Concerned, I turned to see the Absol standing stiffly, regarding our foe with a look of horror. "The Plasmid Foundation has been busy."

"Come on, we can take him!" I insisted as I stood beside the canine hybrid.

"No… I can't…" he whimpered.

"Why not? He's just a human. You carried me, what, three miles without breaking a sweat, and that was _after_ we jumped across a raging river! How on earth could one human pose any threat?"

I glanced back at the kidnapper. It seemed he was waiting for us to make a move… Maybe he knew he couldn't win if he attacked us head on. I'll take all the time I can get in any case.

"No, that's not it!" he cried. "I… I can't… hurt someone…" His voice trailed off as tears trickled into his fur.

"What are you talking about?" I growled low in my throat. "He's trying to kidnap someone! Does that not register with you or something? If you don't fight back, he will take Flare away, do horrible things to him, and we will _never see him again_! How is that so hard to understand?

He started to cry softly. "Because… I feel every wound I inflict. Their pain plays over and over in my head and I just feel so _awful_..."

"And what about all the pain you'll put Flare through if you don't help him _right now_?!" I shouted. "This is our only chance to save him!"

The Absol merely fell to his knees, sobbing, "I'm… I'm so sorry… I've failed you…"

Well, he was useless. Turning back to my opponent a little more warily, I began to approach. Once he attacked with his gusts of wind, I jumped aside to dodge them before I sprinted forward, charging full-tilt into my foe.

As I reached forward to knock him off his feet, he suddenly snapped his arms down to grab me, bringing me to a halt in an instant. A moment later his boot was in my stomach and I fell to the ground, wheezing. Quickly turning over, I prepared to let loose a flamethrower only for him to sharply kick my head. Pain once more dazzled me, and before I could react he sprayed some of that gas up my nose…

* * *

I awoke as a Healing Machine finished its work on me. Snapping upright, it took me a moment to realize I was no longer fighting and I quickly relaxed again. Looking about the room, I saw Kyu and Matthew before me looking worried while Professor Darck silently fumed in his own chair off to the side.

A pit formed in my stomach. "Where's Flare?" I asked.

"Where do you think?!" Kyu snapped. Her ears and eyes fell as she looked away. "They took him."

I sighed, feeling awful. I had failed.

"It was a two-pronged attack" Darck spoke up softly. "A larger squadron of humans in those hybrid-mimicking suits infiltrated Matthew's room and attempted to capture him just minutes before Flare was attacked. It was very well thought out: they knew Matthew was a Psychic-type and would immediately call out to me for help, distracting me and my staff from their true goal to kidnap Flare. Luckily your friend Hope knew what was happening and ran to Flare's aid."

I grumbled to myself about his betrayal right at the end. 'Hope'. What an ironic name...

To my surprise, Kyu spoke up, "Now, I know you think he let you down when he didn't help you fight, but… Hope can't fight any more than you could have. In fact, you're already a much better fighter than he."

I opened my muzzle to argue but Kyu continued, "He wasn't kidding about the whole pain-sense thing. He told me about how you crossed a river and how much it hurt you to touch the water. Imagine _fighting_ in those rapids–that's how Hope feels about hurting anyone for any reason!" She grew angry. "It's as much of a weakness as our weakness to water and I will _not_ let you get on his case for it! If anything, I should blame _you_ for being such a pathetic, weak hybrid!"

Her rage quickly became shame as she realized what she said, but the damage was already done. I hung my head, feeling absolutely awful about myself. Getting told off by Kyu of all people just made it worse. I was a weak, useless, shameful excuse for a–

Kyu gently wrapped her tails around me and hugged. The meaning was clear–there was no way she would have let me touch them if she was still angry at me. I did my best to feel relaxed in her embrace… "I'm sorry. I knew what I said was wrong just as I said it," she spoke somberly. "Look, nobody expected the Plasmin Foundation to pull _that_ bullcrap out of their hat. We were all caught off guard, and believe it or not hope isn't lost! Darck is psychically scouting where they're hiding out and we should be able to move out soon."

"Just finished, actually," Darck said. "As it turns out, we managed to get to you two shortly after you were knocked unconscious. The kidnapper, having left Hope behind, was still quite encumbered by the weight of two teenaged hybrids, so he didn't get far."

He sniffed. "Once he noticed my arrival, he dropped you and ran for it before teleporting away, Flare in tow."

"Teleporting?" I repeated, confused. "Why didn't he just teleport out in the first place?"

"I don't know, but my best guess is that their teleporters have a limited range. We were just a few moments too late, unfortunately. Now let me try to explain something: when someone teleports, for the briefest instant their current location and their destination are one. If you know what to look for and you have decades of training, you might be able to sense where they'll end up. Even for someone such as experienced as me, one has to be ready and watching in order to catch a glimpse of their destination. So when that snake, Dr. Jarred, teleported away back at your home, I was unprepared and thus could not follow him."

"But you knew to expect it this time, so…"

He nodded at me. "I tracked them. They teleported ten miles north of here into an unassuming building."

"So why didn't you teleport after them?"

"Because I didn't know what to expect," he replied. "For all I knew they had the perfect trap in place for any would-be pursuers. I had to take caution and make sure I knew what to prepare for."

"So what did you find, Professor?" Kyu asked.

"It's guarded. _Heavily_. More than a few personnel in those Type mimicking suits along with security cameras, psychic scramblers and detectors, and much more of that sleeping gas."

"Do you have a plan?" I asked.

Professor Darck gave a wicked grin.


	8. Chapter 8 - Control Freak

Chapter 8: Control Freak

"What do you mean I'm not going?!" I shouted.

"I'm not going to put you in harm's way," Professor Darck insisted. "You've already done your part; if it wasn't for you and Hope, we would have never caught him before he teleported and the process of finding him would be magnitudes harder."

"I can't just sit here and try to ignore the fact that all my friends here are risking their lives to save Flare!"

"You're just gonna have to deal with it, Eon," Kyu said. "You have almost no experience with fighting or using Aura for that matter; I'm sorry I have to say this, but you'd just be a burden on the rest of us." I frowned at her and she groaned. "Look, this is from a purely pragmatic point of view. If you come along, we'd have to defend you from any serious danger because as you've discovered for yourself, you're no match for those Type Suit guys."

"Matthew?" I turned to the Mew, feeling desperate.

"I'm sorry, Eon, but I don't want to see you get hurt again!" Matthew cried.

"Are you saying you're that you won't get hurt?"

"Well, no, but at least we can fight back–" he winced once he realized what he had said.

"Just drop it," I muttered. "I know I'm weak."

"Then why do you insist on coming along?" Darck questioned.

"Because…" I turned to face the Headmaster. "Because it's my fault we're in this mess in the first place! Sure I hardly know the guy and he's not the most friendly, but I was there and I could have saved him, but… I didn't. I don't care how hard it is or how badly I'll be hurt. I _have_ to go and save him!" My vision became tinted red from my vehemence as I stared down my teacher.

Professor Darck took a moment to think. "Very well. You may come."

"Yes!" I cheered, throwing my arms in the air only to put them back down when Darck seemed to snap out of something.

"What? No, of course you can't come!" he suddenly backpedaled, glaring at me. "And I must say, that was very inappropriate, hypnotizing your headmaster… like… that… Oh my God." His eyes grew wide and distant.

"What is it, sir?" I replied, feeling a little smaller now that I knew I had inadvertently tried to cheat my way in.

He continued to give me that blank, stunned stare. Nervously I turned to Kyu and Matthew only to find them gawking at me as well, Kyu's jaw hanging loosely in surprise.

The Ninetales girl snapped out of it first. "You… you hypnotized Professor Darck!" she exclaimed. "I thought that was supposed to be impossible!"

"It is?" I replied, feeling baffled.

"Clearly you don't understand the weight of that statement," Darck himself spoke up. "I am one of the most powerful Psychic-types in the world. I have spent the past three centuries honing and strengthening my mind to bring it under my absolute control... control that I do not relinquish to anyone under any circumstance." He looked at me with a serious expression. "Your little trick was the first time _anyone's_ brought me under their command for any amount of time in over a century."

"So you're saying I have a knack for controlling others?" I replied, a little sick. That wasn't a power I exactly wanted.

"More than a knack, you're a prodigy!" Kyu exclaimed. I groaned. "Learning to control others perfectly is a Ninetales' dream! It took me months of practice just to learn how to do it, and here you are waltzing right in and dominating our _Headmaster_!" She grinned gleefully. "We should go and practice that right now; I could show you everything I know and I'll let you practice on me!"

"But what about rescuing Flare?" Matthew spoke up.

Kyu gasped. "Oh, right! Okay, I'm sorry Eon, but once we get back–and we _will_ get back–I'll go and teach you how to use our special Ninetales magic."

"...No." Professor Darck spoke quietly, head bowed in thought.

"Professor?" Kyu replied.

"Teach Eon now. He's coming with you." Kyu and I gasped simultaneously. I quickly tried to think back a few moments; had I accidentally hypnotized him again?

"Sir, are you sure–"

"No, I am not under any suggestion or controlling effects. This is my decision. If Eon can prove he can harness this power of his, it will be much easier to navigate the facility undetected."

"Wasn't that _my_ job, to dominate and control the humans we come across?" Kyu frowned.

"The only reason I haven't partnered you with anyone for this task until now is because up until a few moments ago I thought you were the only non-Psychic at this school who could," Professor Darck explained.

That non-Psychic part was important–the higher up in Plasmid ranks you go, the more likely it is for someone to be carrying a psychic scrambler or shield or whatever, along with all the sensors for that kind of thing. However, we Ninetales had an ability to control someone _without_ what's technically psychic ability. The difference was very complicated, but crucial all the same.

"There's another reason I hesitated chasing after Flare immediately," the Lugia added. "And that's because he's not in any danger yet."

"No danger? What do you mean?" Matthew asked.

"Are you aware why Flare, of all hybrids, was kidnapped? Why they put so much effort solely into capturing him?"

I thought back to what I knew of Flare. "Is it something to do with his knowledge of Aura?" I guessed.

Darck smiled."Exactly. Flare, of all hybrids I have ever met, possesses an unparalleled ability to understand the deepest secrets of Aura and the drive to uncover them all. And what research company do we know of that spends hundreds of millions of dollars to understand Aura and mechanize it?"

"The Plasmid Foundation," I replied with a growing sense of dread. Already they had built those Type Suits that could nearly hold their own against us hybrids. What would they do with Flare's knowledge?

"Correct again, Eon. However, they're smart enough to understand that a willing colleague is far more useful to their means and easier to manage than an angry prisoner. Likely they will attempt to bribe him with whatever luxuries they can afford to give him, piling on more if he helps their research and snatching them away if he is uncooperative."

"How are you so sure?" I asked. If Flare was truly being hurt or tortured as we spoke, I'd never forgive myself for waiting so long to rescue him.

"Because I've seen it time and time again," he replied, his voice dropping low, "and it is terrifyingly effective."

After a moment of silence Kyu nodded. "Right. So how long do we have?"

"If Eon continues to display this level of talent, I hope to move out in a few hours. Not so much for Flare's sake–as I mentioned, he'll be fine for a couple days at least–but for ours; they will continue to build defences around their prize and I want to nip that in the bud as soon as possible. Now, do any of you have questions?"

"Yeah," Matthew said. "Why aren't you coming, Professor? Or any of our friends?"

Darck sighed. "Because the Plasmid Foundation is run by a brilliant man who knows how to play out these schemes like a game of chess. If I come along on this mission I will leave this school much more vulnerable to attack. It's likely nothing my teachers and older students can't handle, but when one deals with Dr. Jarred, one does not leave _anything_ to chance. And... " He sighed. "If my students knew that an attack from the Plasmid Foundation was successful, the school would quickly become paranoid at best and anarchistic at worse. I'd rather not say anything to anyone until Flare is back safely."

"What about our mission?" Kyu questioned. "Without you, isn't our fate up to chance as well?"

"Because he prepared for _me_," Darck replied. "All of his defenses are in place to stop a raging Lugia–psychic shielding, sleep gas, traditional and Auric weaponry, a hefty amount of pure defense in the building's design, the sort of thing he knows will stop me if I charge in blindly. Dr. Jarred knew I was prone to anger, but he miscalculated. I know I need to guard _all_ of my students, not just one. But to have the nerve to kidnap one of my students right under my nose..." He spoke calmly enough, but his body quivered in rage. I didn't want to be on his bad side if he snapped.

"Say, you never did tell us about the last time you were hypnotized," I ventured.

My plan worked as Darck relaxed and chuckled. "Back in Japan, 1889. It is a long and convoluted tale involving a little blue bell, a feather, a certain beautiful Ninetales, an old friend of mine, and more sake than I care to admit. Pray I never tell you the story in detail."

* * *

"It's really not that hard once you get the hang of it," Kyu insisted as Matthew, herself, and me stepped out into the open campus.

"You said that about breathing fire, too," I sniped.

Kyu only chuckled. "And look how fast you picked that up. Also, if you can prove that little demonstration with Professor Darck wasn't just a fluke, I have strong hopes you can become a powerful asset in our mission–more useful than me, probably."

"Friendly reminder that you could beat me into the ground with a single hand," I grinned.

"That's a good point!" Kyu replied, a smile tugging at her lips. "That is, if you can't get off a Hypnosis first."

"Speaking of, how exactly do I do that?" I asked.

"Look into their eyes and will them to do what you want," Kyu explained.

"That's it?"

"Well… ugh, it's complicated. Why don't you just give it a try? Stare at me and make me do something, okay?"

"T-take control of you?" I repeated. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, yes, I'm sure!" she insisted. "Go on, now, dominate me!"

That word made me cringe. But I had to learn it one way or another… I looked into Kyu's eyes, willing myself to take control of her. Nothing happened. I kept staring, and Kyu kept staring back. Suddenly my vision became tinted red again, my mind suddenly felt stretched out, and Kyu stiffened. Curious, I thought of her raising an arm, and her left arm flung itself up.

"Testing, testing," the Ninetales girl said at my suggestion. This was working! I started to walk towards my subject, but suddenly my mind snapped back together and Kyu stumbled before righting herself on her own.

"N-nice job, Eon," Kyu said, a blush forming beneath the fur on her cheeks. "That was really good!"

"I didn't mean to end it, though," I complained. "Once I started moving myself my control ended."

"That's nothing to mope about," Kyu waved it off. "It still takes all my focus to control both bodies at once, and I've been practicing for months!"

"So how do you plan to control all the people you come across in the Plasmid Foundation building?"

"I don't," Kyu winked. "The trick is to exert just enough power over them that they believe what you say, like you did with Professor Darck. In case you forgot, we just need to have them think that we're new recruits that just arrived."

"Even though we're going to pop in right in the middle of the building?" The teleportation exit that Flare's kidnapper escaped to was the only part of the building that wasn't warded against teleportation. Sure we could force our way in anyway, but the dip in power from the shielding would definitely raise suspicion.

"As long as we can get past those initial security cameras, it's just a matter of disguising ourselves as the right people until we get to Flare."

"Right, right…" I replied, going over the plan again in my head.

"Speaking of, let me make sure you're up to snuff on the rest of the Hypnosis techniques."

The next couple hours were a series of drills on what questions to ask, how to control someone without being noticed in the first place, and how to rapidly switch between levels of control to best handle our situation. It was surprisingly easy, more of a matter of understanding what exactly I needed to do rather than actual practice like with my fire breath.

By the end of my tutorial I could dominate Kyu or Matthew within moments, force them to either say what I want them to say or tell me the truth about anything I want (though out of respect I avoided making them spill their personal secrets). I could also rapidly take full control to stop the other from attacking me, and near the end I perfected a technique to rapidly switch my control between them to get them to fight one another.

"Last test," Kyu spoke, eyeing me curiously. "Take full control of me, force me to stand still, and then walk up to me."

"But I thought it was impossible to control both bodies at once."

"Impossible?" Kyu scoffed. "No! Just really, really hard for beginners like us. But I've got high hopes for you; show me what you've learned!"

In response, I glared at her, quickly stretching my mind out to suppress hers. I felt her resist with everything she had, but still I forced her to stand stiffly before me. To move myself, I had to lessen my hold on the fox girl to return some control to my own mind, a process which demanded all of my focus. Slowly, I secured both a hold on her mind and my own and took a step forward. Kyu nearly broke free, but I snapped back my control of her just in time.

This process repeated a few more times. I secured my hold on Kyu, rolled back just enough to myself to take a step forward, than quashed Kyu's efforts to escape. After what felt like an eternity, I stumbled directly into her, breaking my enchantment and sending us both tumbling to the ground.

"That was so cool!" Matthew clapped excitedly and flew up to us as we stood. "Well, all it really looked like was Eon taking soooo long to walk to Kyu, but I sensed all the wrestling in your brains and I was super impressed. Good job, Eon!" I found myself lifted into the air, with Matthew twirling with me in a midair hug.

"Oh, one more thing," Kyu spoke up as I was deposited back on the ground. "I-if you ever want… you know, to practice this later on?" She swallowed and blushed. "You could always, you know, practice with me? You could even spring it on me when I don't expect it! That is, of course, only if you want to." She chuckled nervously.

"You keep blushing," I finally said out loud. "Why do you keep blushing when we talk about me controlling you?"

She was silent for a couple moments. Then she whispered, "I like it?"

"You… _like_ being controlled?" I frowned.

"Yes, okay, I enjoy the idea of being dominated by someone else and forced to do things against my will!" she spoke quickly. A little more relaxed, she continued, "Kind of ironic that I can do it to others, but nobody aside from you can do it to me. That's why I was so excited to find out you were such a natural at Hypnosis… this is sort of a fantasy of mine."

"So... you'd like it if we practiced this more often?"

"Yes, please." She gave me the cutest smile.

I smiled in turn, then focused my power to make her say "Definitely!" for me.

As I released the enchantment, Kyu seemed to almost melt. "Thanks, Eon," she said, stepping forward to wrap me in a soft, fluffy hug.

"Um… guys?" Matthew spoke up. "The rescue?"

"Oh, shoot!" Kyu yanked herself free and looked up at the clock above the main building. "We're almost late! Come on, guys!"

We bolted to the main building and up a couple flight of stairs to Professor Darck's office where the final meeting was to take place before we would all leave to rescue Flare. Apparently Matthew, Kyu and I were to be accompanied by Hope and another hybrid named Shay.

Shay was a smaller hybrid, at least a head shorter than me. As I entered the room all I saw of her was her incredible mane of vibrant green hair flecked with yellow, which grew all the way down to her paws and completely concealed her from view. Two enormous pink flowers seemed to grow from each side of her head.

As the three of us approached, she turned to face us. She had a short hedgehog's muzzle and uniform white fur all over her body, and she wore a simple pink tank top over a pair of jeans with muddy knees. Her emerald eyes widened as they met mine, and she gasped and jumped back.

"Oh, sorry, did I startle you?" I apologized, picking up on her increased heart rate.

"A little," she whispered with a soft smile, refusing to make eye contact.

"Good of you three to join us," Darck took the center stage from his desk. "Did the training go well?"

"Yes, sir," Kyu nodded. "Eon can easily take control of either of us in under a second, just by making direct eye contact. His ability to rapidly change who and how much of a person he controls is, from my experience, unparalleled, and I'm fairly confident he could fully control himself and a Plasmid member with a bit of help from me. In short, he's gonna help a _lot_." I hoped nobody noticed my blushing.

"Very good, you two." Professor Darck gave a wicked smile. "Now give me a moment to remind you of your mission.

"Your job is to infiltrate the Plasmid Foundation building ten miles north of here, find Flare and any other hybrids that may be there, and return them safely back to this academy. You will have to deal with attack from all sorts of personnel, most of which I can guarantee to be armed and trained against hybrids like you. Knowing that you have heightened senses, there may be noxious or putrid-smelling gas, painfully loud ultrasound, or they may simply attack you with your Auric weaknesses."

"My what?" I repeated. Shay and Matthew looked at me funny.

Darck sighed, and explained impatiently, "Simply put, substances that directly interfere with your Aura, which in your case is anything based around water or earth. It hurts far deeper than standard attacks because it hurts your very life essence in addition to your body. Does that answer your questions?"

"Yes, sir."

"It's okay, Eon," Hope spoke up in that soft voice of his. "We all had to learn it at some point; now is as good a time as any."

"If I may continue," Darck looked impatient. "Thank you. Shay will be the medic on the team, with her healing and cleansing abilities. But be sure not to depend on her; healing wastes precious time and increases your risk of detection of being caught.

"Hope will inform you all of incoming threats, and Kyu and Eon will attempt to neutralize them before they get a chance to call for backup. Matthew will provide some… eclectic assistance. He will cast an illusion to first hide your initial teleportation and then to disguise you all as the Plasmid staff members to more comfortably navigate the facility. All you must do is act in character and ideally you shouldn't be detected."

He turned to the floating feline directly. "Now remember, Matthew–_do not attempt to psychically search for Flare!_" The sternness in his voice and his intense, draconic stare was easily unnerving. "From previous experience, I know that Jarred has developed sensors for psychic interference, and it's safer to assume he's refined it to be able to locate you immediately should you let your mind wander. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir," Matthew squeaked out.

Darck's gaze softened. "Forgive my severity. I just care so much for you all, and I'd hate if something were to happen to any of you. I'm afraid, and I react to that fear with anger. But… it's what must be done. I have the utmost confidence that you all can complete this mission. But please, be careful."

"We will, Professor," Kyu promised.

"I'm glad. Are you all ready to go?"

We looked to one another, and one by one we all nodded.

"Then let us begin."

**A/N: Next chapter's a good one, just you wait! As always, reviews and favorites are greatly appreciated, and serve as a big source of motivation for me!**


	9. Chapter 9 - Metal Gear Hybrid

Chapter 9 - Metal Gear Hybrid

Matthew wasted no time in beginning the first step. He rapidly transformed, his tail regressing into his backside while his previously short hair grew and darkened into a huge crimson and red mane to dwarf even Shay's, a vulpine muzzle grew from his shorter feline jaws and the rest of his body reshaped itself with thicker paws and very sharp-looking claws. He descended to the ground, now devoid of his psychic power. The Zoroark, as the species was called, grinned at us with pride.

I briefly remembered asking how Matthew could transform during Darck's initial briefing.

Matthew giggled to himself. "My whole family is entirely hybrids! My parents, my grandparents, my great grandparents, my _really_ great grandparents all the way back to _their_ really great grandparents are hybrids! I've got sooo many hybrid genes swimming around in me that I can choose from any of them to be!"

"I've met his family," Darck muttered. "Altogether too prideful of their pure hybrid blood, to the point of terrorizing any human their children get too close to."

"Isn't that counterproductive? I mean, hybrids get a bad rep already for just being different…"

"Extremely," The Lugia groaned. "I can only thank Arceus that Matthew didn't inherit any of their cruelty."

"Arceus? Who's that?"

Darck chuckled. "It's an inside joke. Don't worry about it."

* * *

"Oh boy, I've always wanted to try this!" the black-furred Matthew exclaimed, creating a shadowy, purple orb of energy between his hands.

"Try?" I repeated. "You mean you've never done this before?!"

"Well, no, but it seemed pretty easy when my Zoroark friend explained it to me last month," Matthew replied, his fingers writhing over the dark Aura.

"Wait, our whole mission is riding on whether you can perfectly use a technique you've _never tried before?!_"

"Matthew's a special sort, Eon," Kyu explained. "He can use all kinds of Aura, provided someone can teach him first. So while he'll never be able to breathe fire as well as we do, or control the winds as well as Professor Darck, he's able to learn anything the rest of us can, with a few exceptions. This, technically, is an exception-"

"But transformation just makes up for it!" Matthew interrupted. "Yeah, only Zoroarks can make these fancy illusion balls, so all I had to do was turn into a Zoroark!"

I could only shrug. Hopefully he knew what he was doing.

Suddenly Matthew grinned, revealing sharp white teeth in contrast with his pitch-black muzzle. Tossing the ball of Aura to the ground, we all became engulfed in the ball's explosion of violet energy. When it cleared, Matthew was gone.

"Did he already go?" I asked, confused.

"Nope! I'm still here!" the disembodied voice of Matthew replied. For a brief moment his illusion rippled to reveal him before us creating another illusion ball. "Just give me a few more seconds, okay?"

After a couple moments of silence, Matthew invisibly crafting his next illusion, the Mew-turned-Zoroark broke his invisibility long enough to nod at Professor Darck. With a wave of his wing-arm, Darck teleported Matthew out of the room. I tensed, my heart racing. This was it. Any moment we'd be in the middle of the enemy's base, risking our lives for Flare.

"Are all of you ready?" Darck asked. "Nobody will blame you if you back out now; this will be one of the most dangerous situations you may ever face in your life."

I steeled myself and responded, "No. I'm going."

"Count me in," Kyu chimed in with forced casualness.

"I'm ready," Hope nodded.

Shay took a little longer, but she nevertheless looked to Darck with determination. "Let's go."

We were in a stark, white room filled with machines and wires. Beneath the floor the light of pink Aura created the shape of a pentacle surrounding the teleport pad, the circle of the symbol lined with strange characters. Down the halls to my left and right were thick, heavy doors. Matthew the Zoroark was creating little illusion balls and sending each to cover just the security cameras-that way even if his initial illusion broke, the cameras would still see an empty room.

"Matthew, what are you doing?" Kyu spoke in a harsh whisper. "Why aren't we all invisible?"

"We ARE invisible, Kyu!" Matthew let out a giggle, which in this form dripped with mischief. "All the way up to those big doors, I can control what our enemies see and hear. So relax! Nobody knows what we're doing as long as we stay in here."

"We can't stay for long, though," Shay spoke.

"Right. Flare's on the third floor, and this is in the basement," I recalled.

Hope squeaked. "You're going to take control of the scientist about to walk in to perform maintenance." He seemed worried.

"It's what has to be done." Kyu put a hand on Hope's fluffy shoulder.

Kyu and I took up watch on either end of the room, prepared to hypnotize the first person to walk through. I found myself shivering uncontrollably from anxiety. If the wrong character walks in, if at any point we mess up… we could all be captured, never to see our families and friends again. I did my best to steady my breathing despite the adrenaline pulsing through my veins.

My ears pricked as movement behind Kyu's exit caught my attention. First a keycard opened a regular door, then pistons moved and gears grinded to slowly open the incredibly thick vault door. He walked towards us casually, completely oblivious to our ambush. Kyu stood, clenching her fists as the man stiffened. I stood from my post and extended my own mind to his with a look, so either of us could move without breaking our hold on him. We brought the man to us as Matthew reshaped our illusion, such that we appeared both human and in a similar state of dress.

The illusion was magnificent. Matthew seemed to effortlessly detail our figures, while keeping hints of our true selves underneath- Kyu's crimson eyes, my silvery hair, Shay's pale skin, and so on.

I felt the nature of Kyu's control change, and I, too, shifted to a suggestion effect. "Hello!" Kyu called brightly.

The man blinked, but quickly reoriented himself."What are you doing down here? This section is off-limits to those without proper clearance!" The man scowled, yet he didn't make any movements.

"We just got here and we kinda got lost," Kyu chuckled in embarrassment. "Could you please tell us where the main lab is?"

"I didn't hear anything about new recruits," the scientist frowned, touched by Kyu's magic.

"Oh, you didn't?" Kyu replied. "I don't think we're part of your division-maybe that's why you didn't know." Kyu's eyes flashed red.

"Yes, that makes sense," the man nodded, appeased. "Well, it's on the second floor, first door on the right from the staircase."

"Perfect! Thanks!" Kyu beamed. "Oh, but I've lost my keycard. Could I borrow yours, sir?"

"Yes, of course," the man replied, removing the card from his pocket and offering it to the girl.

"Thank you so much, sir! Now take a nice rest." Her eyes glowed as her magic put the man to sleep.

Kyu and I turned back to the group to find Hope looking distraught. "He's going to get fired. He's going to be yelled at by his superiors for what you just did and kicked out the door, and then he'll go home frightened of losing his house and his property and unsure of what to do next… and it's all because of us…"

Kyu stepped forward to surround him in a many-tailed hug. Against my better judgment, I frowned as jealousy sparked inside me. How could she trust _him_, of all people? Despite what she said, I still blamed Hope for losing Flare.

"It's okay, Hope," Kyu consoled him. "This is for the greater good. You know that."

The Absol sniffed, and removed himself from Kyu's embrace. Looking back at us, he nodded. "I'm sorry. I won't let my empathy slow us down. This… this _is_ for the greater good. I understand."

"It's okay, Hope!" Matthew smiled, clapping him on the back. Hope flinched, but Matthew continued, "I know you'll be a huge help! So let's go, guys!"

Matthew caused us all to become invisible to everyone but ourselves with his illusions. Cautiously we padded our way out of the teleporter room and down the hall to the staircase leading back to the main floor. As long as we kept our claws off the laminated tile flooring, I found that I could barely hear the sound of our pawsteps, even with my enhanced hearing.

Matthew led our group with Kyu and I flanking him. With him in front he could rapidly change his illusion to suit the situation, and we Ninetales could pick up the slack if any of the staff got troublesome.

We climbed the stairs up to the first floor, pausing just in the hallway before the main entrance. With another illusion Matthew had us appear to enter from the front entrance, rather than down from the teleporters. Just as the doors appeared to open to let our illusory selves in, the security guard on either side turned on a dime to block our way.

"Visitors are not welcome here. Leave immediately or we will remove you by force," the taller of the two demanded.

I looked to Matthew and we shared a nod. I squeezed past the guards (ensuring not to make physical contact) over to my false self and took its place.

Making sure to look them both in the eye and activate my magic, I spoke confidently, "Oh, we're not visitors! We just got hired a few days ago to work in the lab. Our employer said they needed a few more hands with a project he just started, and we were happy to help."

Whatever flaw in logic my explanation may have had, my power made up for it, since after a moment of thought both guards turned aside to let me back in with the illusions. One by one each member of our group stood inside our respective illusion, giving us a free pass to walk around the facility-and on camera, too!"

This plan was working perfectly! All we had to do now was bluff our way into the main lab, figure out exactly where Flare and any other hybrids may be, and bluff them right back out.

Up the staircase at the back of the entrance we went, and true to our captive's word the right hallway was taken up by a glass wall revealing the main lab, where scientists bustled about between instruments. There were a lot of people in there… hopefully I could instill suggestion into enough of them to get by…

I placed our keycard into the slot above the door's handle, and to my relief the door unlocked without a problem. To avoid suspicion, I walked in alone, leaving my group just outside behind the corner. A few of the staff and the guards by the door gave me funny looks, but as I looked back at them, they returned to their work without a word. I looked about for someone who seemed higher up and relatively alone-they would know more and would be the best person to ask after Flare, Darck suggested.

Behind a window off to the side, a middle-aged woman with graying hair and framed glasses sat alone at her desk, typing away at a computer with a myriad papers strewn across her desk. She's the one, I decided. I walked up to her door, knocking once and giving her a look through her window that insisted I enter.

She waved me in, and I wasted no time in asking, "I'm here to talk with the hybrid. Where's it being held?" It felt awful, dehumanizing Flare like that. But using "it" to refer to hybrids was expected in the Plasmid Foundation, and I didn't want the cameras picking up on any deviance.

She seemed to resist for a moment, but as my eyes glowed crimson (thankfully hidden by Matthew's illusion), she relaxed and offered, "It's on the third floor, room 323. Don't worry about it hurting you. That one's never attacked the staff, and has overall acted surprisingly human. Just pretend it's a real person and it'll comply with what you want. And it might help to bring a snack for it, too; the thing eats more than my dog." My muscles tensed, and it took all my will to avoid setting her on fire. She'd get her comeuppance someday, but right now I had more important things to do.

"Thank you," I forced out, and left the lab, my fists clenching and unclenching angrily.

Hope's eyes widened with fear just before the intercom system turned on. A voice that made my stomach clench began speaking over it, "I would just like to congratulate our hybrid guests on trying so hard to reach their friend," Dr. Jarred declared with all the enthusiasm of a proud boss. "I must say I learned a lot from you two Ninetales-you could make my staff tell you whatever you wanted! But next time, ensure the guards watching the cameras believe your words too. But Zoroark, you intrigued me most of all. You aren't truly a Zoroark, are you? Yet you handle your illusions with such finesse! Now I must go to think over the data you provided at headquarters, but make sure to give my guards lots of data on your abilities! See you soon!"

The pounding of boots against the tile came from all sides, but it was quickly drowned out in the loudest, highest-pitched sound I had ever heard. I fell to the floor, slamming my ears shut in agony. "What's that noise?!" I demanded.

Kyu also had her ears covered as she grimaced, but at least she remained standing. "It's the loudest goddamned dog whistle I've ever heard!" she swore. "This is what Darck meant by ultrasound-it's outside the range of human hearing, but easily within ours, giving them the advantage. Shoot, here they come!" Two humans in Type Suits came at us from either side. Impossibly Kyu lifted her hands off her head and adopted a battle stance, fire pooling in her maw.

For the first time I noticed that our illusion was gone. Matthew had returned to his regular Mew form, and for the first time since I met him his eyes were cold and angry and his muzzle contorted in a snarl. He glared at our foes, a couple personnel each in a Type Suit pulsating with differently colored lines of light. The dark helmet covering their faces prevented me from making eye contact, rendering me nearly useless. We were surrounded on either side, backed into a corner by the lab.

Each lifted a strange type of gun, but I wasn't about to ask what it is. Suddenly Matthew's eyes shone a deeper blue and each of their weapons crumpled and broke, the guards dropped them just as the guns started to crush their hand. Matthew teleported before the two on the left, electricity arcing from his hands to each of them like a Sith Lord. The Mew didn't let up until two writhing, unconscious bodies fell before him.

Hope jumped between Kyu and our opponents in front of me, swinging his claws at the air, and small darts, all cut in half, fell to the floor. Kyu seemed just as shocked as I was at his precision.

In unison the guards who had shot at us raised their left hands as a slight hissing became barely audible over the whining of the ultrasound. "Sleep gas!" I shouted to my friends.

"I can handle that," Shay declared. Standing before us, the pink flowers in her hair began to glow as the noxious fumes were condensed out of the air and drawn into her flowers, tinging them black. I didn't feel lightheaded at all; her flowers were surprisingly efficient.

The one on the left put her wrists together as orange lights flowed through her arms. I remembered something similar happened just before Flare's kidnapper summoned that wind, but instead of being sky-blue, it was orange… like fire.

Even if I was wrong, taking a bullet was all I was good for at this point, so I jumped between Shay and the guard just as an enormous flamethrower hurtled towards us like a comet. I tried to recall my training, and with a deep breath I managed to pull in all the fire she emitted. Now charged with Aura, I let all of my fire back out alongside Kyu, and together our inferno scorched the personnel on our side. The papers and decor along the walls burnt to ash, the lights above shattering from the heat, and our opponents were covered in third-degree burns. I felt sick seeing their exposed muscle and flesh, my eyes widening with horror and disgust.

But this was no time to dwell on that. Suddenly another man rushed around the corner and jumped over his fallen comrades, deep blue lights shining in the Aura conduit lines in his palm. I tensed just as he summoned a torrent of water that blasted towards us. Matthew's ears pricked, and without taking his gaze off his side he yanked us both into the air above the incoming wave. Nevertheless, a little water splashed onto my tails and I yelped in pain.

Another Type Suit dashed down Matthew's side, his Type Suit glowing violet if not pure black. Matthew cringed as he approached with an Aura-infused dagger, but Hope slid between them and with his own darkness-fueled claws stopped the blade in its tracks. The Dark Suit pulled another dagger from his belt, and the two began a duel.

"Look out!" Shay cried, jumping up in the air in front of Kyu and I. She fell back to the ground with three darts in her stomach, breathing heavily. Her flowers turned an even darker shade.

"Let us down, Matthew!" Kyu shouted over the ultrasound, and we were both deposited to the wet floor unceremoniously. I skipped from paw to paw, trying to avoid the freezing water beneath us, but Kyu simply evaporated it all to steam with a quick puff of fire.

"Are you okay, Shay?" Kyu called, kneeling beside her.

"I'm fine," she replied between ragged gasps. "Just give me a few moments."

Kyu turned away and gasped. "Another wave incoming!" she shouted.

Shay suddenly stood, darts tipped with blood falling from her shirt. Her black flowers glowed brightly, and in a flash of green light she sent a blast of energy that overcame the water wave and tore at our opponent.

Matthew yelped and fell to the ground, two darts sticking out of his arm. I couldn't see where they came from, only that Hope was still too occupied with his own foe.

"Matthew!" Shay cried, turning to place her hands on him and draw out the toxins.

I turned back to see the Water Suit lift his gun again, aiming straight at Shay. I growled and stood before Shay, ready to take a bullet for real this time. As I prepared to breath fire in a last act of defiance, my vision suddenly became entirely red, and as the crimson tint faded I noticed the man had not shot me. In fact... he was rather stiff.

Allowing myself just a grin, I forced the man to jump over to Matthew's side and fire at the Dark Suit point-blank before shooting himself in the leg, causing them both to crumple to the ground unconscious. Hope took the opportunity to slice up a few more darts from the sniper up ahead with his impossible precision.

Kyu peered ahead, fire glowing at the back of her throat. Just as Hope protected us from another volley of darts, Kyu spat out a fast-moving fiery projectile that exploded far ahead with a muffled boom. Considering that the clairvoyant Hope relaxed, it seemed Kyu had met her mark.

And suddenly Hope tensed once again, "Matthew! Bubble shield, quickly!"

But Matthew was just now waking up as Shay cleared the tranquilizer from his body. Hope gave an anguished cry and tackled Matthew to the ground just as his back was struck with ten more darts. He relaxed immediately, now unconscious.

Matthew immediately summoned his signature pink psychic bubble around us while Shay attended to Hope. A few more darts stuck to the bubble's surface, followed by a lull in their attack. I finally removed my hands from my ears; the shield also muffled most of the sound, giving us some respite from that attack.

"This isn't working," Kyu muttered. "We can't make any progress at all with these guards on our tails."

"I think they're almost out of guys, though," Matthew replied, still focused on maintaining his shield. "I can feel it, too. Let's just get Hope all better and then we'll make a run for Flare!"

"I'm almost done," Shay announced.

Just as Hope began to stir, the noise turned off and all the lights dimmed considerably. Matthew tensed, his long tail lashing with effort.

"What's going on?" Kyu asked. As if to answer her question, Matthew's bubble shield began to fizzle like a bad TV connection and the Mew himself fell to the ground on unsteady paws.

"It's… messing up my psychic power…!" Matthew forced out. "Oww, it hurts, too!"

Suddenly the bubble burst, leaving us defenseless. Immediately a thick hail of darts sped towards us, and each of us were marked with more than a few.

I cringed at the sharp needling pain. Already I was feeling lightheaded…

My head hurt horribly as I awoke, pounding like a hammer in my brain. Looking around, I found myself in a simple room with smooth tile flooring and concrete walls painted white. There was a simple white bed, a metal desk loaded with food, and a cheap nightstand, but nothing else. There were no windows, but the room was well-lit.

Expect, of course, Flare and my four teammates. I was the only one awake of my group, it seemed. Flare was sitting across the room cross-legged, and when he heard me stir he simply regarded me with another blank, emotionless stare.

"You're awake," he spoke.

I groaned, feeling quite depressed. The mission had failed and we were all captured. "I guess so."

"I didn't expect you guys to come for a while, so I've been stockpiling food while I could."

"Food?" I repeated with a look of confusion.

"Yes. In return for some generic knowledge about Aura, they give me extra helpings of food. I'm trying to eat as much as I can in preparation for my escape, which, taking into account your hasty arrival, will be today."

"You're going to escape?!"

"Yes. But I didn't expect you to bring a Grass-type, either, so I'm hoping she won't die from my attempt."

"Die? From what?" At this point I was thoroughly baffled. My headache didn't help matters either.

"To put it in layman's terms, I can create a small nuclear explosion with nothing but air and Aura." My eyes widened, but he continued, "I have developed the technique in theory, but my calculations have always suggested it would take too much energy to properly use without depleting my body of energy and killing me, so I've been eating as much as possible to mitigate the risks. Now that you all are here… I believe I can survive it, if you can return us to the academy promptly after."

As if on cue, Shay began to stir. With merely a quick glance at me, she simply turned around and hurried the others' awakening with her cleansing powers before clearing my headache. Soon Kyu and Shay were formally introducing themselves to Flare, and we all shared condolences for our failure. I noticed Matthew holding his head as he stood rather than floated.

"Sorry everyone…" he whimpered. "I can't teleport with this machine messing me up! We really are stuck here."

"Not quite, Matthew-wait, hold on," I just remembered. "Are there any other hybrids here? I don't want them getting caught in the blast either."

"Blast? What blast?" Kyu asked.

"Apparently Flare can make a nuke out of thin air," I paraphrased.

"No, technically a nuke is a manufactured powered by nuclear fission, in which two subcritical masses of plutonium are smashed together. I will create a nuclear _fusion_ explosion out of primarily nitrogen found in the air around us, which might kill me from requiring too much Aura. It's hard to estimate, but I will likely survive with just hours left to live without treatment at the academy. Furthermore, it was made very clear to me when I first arrived that there were no other hybrids here, and as such I should give up on plotting an escape. I believe it was an attempt to deride my self-confidence, albeit an ineffective one."

"Since you plotted all that anyway," Kyu chuckled. She turned serious. "But hold on-you said this technique of yours might kill you? I'd rather not take that risk, if possible."

Matthew had adopted his Zoroark form once again, which seemed to relieve his pain. "Yeah, that would be bad! What if… what if we just fight our way out? We could all blast out one wall and escape as fast as possible!"

"That would be ill-advised." Flare said. "I was also informed that the walls and doors are all thoroughly wired to a very powerful sprinkler system-if any of the wires are tampered with, we can expect Eon, his friend, and me to be incapacitated almost immediately."

"Come on, a little rain won't kill me-I'll just keep Eon under my tails," Kyu brushed it off.

"Look at the sprinklers overhead, please," Flare asked.

I directed my gaze upward and felt my stomach flip. Those weren't so much sprinklers on the ceiling as faucets attached to fans… I estimated that they could flood the room to the top within a couple minutes, easily.

"Ugh, well…" Kyu muttered. After couple empty moments, she shrugged. "Are you _sure_ this is the only way?"

"Yes. I've spent thirty hours calculating the parameters of my situation. This is the only way, even with you all factored in."

"Fine. But I want to hear it from the rest of my team, too."

"We're running low on time, Kyu," I spoke up. "Who knows when they'll come and split us up for good?"

"I trust Flare. From what I've heard, his analysis has never been wrong before," Shay nodded, even as her heart pounded.

"That's right!" Matthew grinned. "Flare's a super-smart guy! I'd always go with his plan."

"Let's do it, then," Kyu groaned.

"Now listen carefully," Flare explained, sounding very rehearsed, "because Hope and Shay are at serious risk of dying. Eon, ah, Kyu, and Matthew in a Fire-type form need to ensure that you are completely surrounding Hope and Shay with your bodies. If this technique succeeds, the air in this room will be briefly heated to over ten million Kelvin which will kill anything but a Fire-type. But as Fire-types naturally absorb heat from their surroundings, you can prevent Shay and Hope from falling to serious harm if neither of them is directly exposed to my technique. Do you understand?"

We all voiced our understanding, and Matthew transformed into a dragon-like hybrid with orange scales and blue wings, his long, lizard-like tail ending in with a small flame at its tip.

"Now do as I asked. I must review the technique as to ensure it goes smoothly."

We complied and awkwardly bunched together as I mentally prepared myself for all four of them to make contact with my sacred tails. Yet as I pulled my tails closer to them, I couldn't help but stop a few inches from Hope's fur. I scowled.

"What's the matter, Eon?" Kyu asked, her tails totally covering Shay and Hope in front. What little she couldn't cover was made up with Matthew's right wing.

"I… I can't." I admitted. "I can't let Hope touch my tails."

"Why not? Hasn't he earned with, what with saving your butt from a million tranquilizer darts?"

I decided to be honest. "Because it's his fault we're all in this mess in the first place. If he could have just manned up and taken out Flare's kidnapper last night, we wouldn't have had to go through all this hell to get Flare back! I can't just _let_ him feel my precious tails after all that!" My cheeks burned as I once more instinctively considered my tails so sacred… but, well, I guess it was true.

Kyu scowled and opened her mouth to criticized me, but Hope interrupted her. "No, Kyu, he's right; it's my fault." He bowed his head in shame. "I'm sorry, Eon. I know that I was weak, and that I couldn't bring myself to hurt someone even if it would have led to all this. So perhaps I don't deserve your protection. If it makes you happier, I won't force you protect me. I'll suffer Flare's attack as punishment for hurting you all." Still bowed, he simply waited for a response.

A moment of silence passed as everyone looked to me. Oblivious to their stares, I thought deeply about his words. Something about them, whether it was his tone or word choice, left me wanting to forgive him. He was definitely guilt-tripping me, that was certain. But he was right; I wouldn't be any happier leaving him to burn; in fact, I'd likely regret it for the rest of my life.

With all my willpower, I swallowed my resentment and anger, wrapping my tails around Shay… and... Hope, too. Kyu smiled, and I felt a little better about myself.

Luckily Matthew covering my tails with his wings didn't cause me any grief, and of course I didn't mind Kyu's touch. Our shield was nearly complete.

"Kneel down," Flare instructed. "You will reduce your exposed surface area enough for their tails and wings to completely cover you.

In turn all of us kneeled, giving us Fire-types the chance to be certain our fluffy fire shield was tight and flawless. Flare even tested it, breathing fire over us from all sides. He didn't go easy either, producing scorching infernos that left his room charred and smoky. When Shay mentioned she didn't get singed, let alone horribly burned, the Flareon deemed our shield sufficient.

He sat down again, facing away from us. "I demand complete silence. With a technique this dangerous and complicated, I have to be absolutely sure every step of it goes exactly to plan. Do not talk, do not fidget, and do not interrupt me for any reason. Furthermore, hang on to one another as tightly as you can and do not let go at any moment. Do you understand?"

"We got it, Flare. Now bust us out of here!" Kyu exclaimed. Matthew, Kyu and I then held hands around our shield, gripping one another as tightly as we dared without breaking bones.

Flare took a deep breath, then began talking to himself. "Fire-types can will their Aura to produce fire; fire is the product of exciting molecules in the air with sufficient energy as to cause their electrons to release photons of radiation in the visible spectrum. By exciting just the molecules between my hands and willing the radiation into a spiral, I can produce a magnetic field to keep any molecules of air from escaping or losing their energy from photon emissions, as most released radiation is just funneled back into my spiral.

"The energy required to heat just a gram of nitrogen atoms to five million Kelvin is far less than one may expect…" his breathing became heavier and ragged. Kyu gripped me a little tighter. "But still several hundred thousand Calories nonetheless… " I heard a high-pitched ringing. "And yet, these heats are still far less than what is required for nuclear fusion… So with a technique... far beyond the scope of human understanding…" The ringing became louder. Boots pounded down the hall. "A technique only I, who... understands physics enough... to bend it to my will, can perform… I… weaken… the electrostatic repulsion… in my atoms…"

The door burst open. The sprinklers activated.

My world became a blinding white light.

* * *

Some time later, I opened my eyes to find myself on a patch of grass some distance away from the fiery remains of the Plasmid building. Anything above the second floor was completely gone, leaving a collapsing, charred heap below. I felt bruised all over my side where I had fallen.

"Woohoo!" Kyu cheered, removing herself from our group hug to clap and jump excitedly at the burning building. "Damn, Flare, that was the most amazing thing I've ever seen! How come you've never done that before?!"

In response, Flare coughed behind us. In contrast to his healthy build from before, the Flareon was just skin and bones, glowing faintly from all the Aura energy he had absorbed. "I did say it took more energy than I typically had in body mass, correct?" His speech was raspy and quiet. "I estimate I have four hours of Aura energy keeping me alive, but once that expires, I will die."

"Uh-oh!" Matthew cried in his childish, but now very draconic voice. He quickly transformed back into his regular self and flew over to Flare. He looked at Flare, who looked back, seemingly unconcerned by his condition. Matthew only smiled. "Let's get you home, buddy!" An instant later we were in the school campus.

Professor Darck teleported to us immediately, pulling all of us into a hug while he wept softly.

* * *

A woman appeared in the thankfully still functioning teleporter room. The visor in her Psychic Aura-Producing Suit showed her the residual traces of hybrid Aura. Some Dark here, a little Grass there, lots of Fire everywhere, too… where was the Psychic Aura she was after?

She left the room and ascended the stairs up to the ground floor. Some charred timber blocked the way out, but no matter - with Dr. Jarred's newest prototype, she had power to spare for this mission. She extended her hand and willed the debris out of the way. The mental command was translated by the technology in the APS to a flood of pink Aura which traveled along her arm and out her hand. The debris rose into the air and off to the side. She grinned behind her dark helmet.

The building had been reduced to ash. Only a few lives were lost, thanks to Jarred's incredible foresight in evacuating the building. Still, these hybrids were becoming a real pain to handle. No signs of the Psychic Aura, though. She tried an Aura pulse. One response, from 0.6 miles east. It seemed to be just more Fire, but with how important this mission was… it was worth a look.

Some time later she climbed the grassy hill, creating another Aura pulse to check for signs of her target.

There. It was faint, but definitely the Auric signature Dr. Jarred was after. Gingerly she reached down to pick up a single, pink hair which she held up to her visor, then pushed a concealed button by her ear.

"Yes, that's it!" Jarred cried excitedly in her earpiece. "That's exactly the one! Quickly, bring it in! Oh, my dear, you've done it! This is the key to all my research!"


	10. Chapter 10 - Sun Fox

Chapter 10 - Sun Fox

_I exhaled a jet of flame, Kyu scowling at me with disapproval. "God, Eon, you're horrible at this! Keep up this pace and you'll be laughed out of this school before you get a _chance _to sign up for the tournament. Again!" I couldn't fail Kyu—not now, not ever. I willed up all of my power and breathed another flame, this one my largest yet. Two men in Type Suits collapsed to the ground, the acrid stench of burned flesh filling the room._

I snapped awake, abruptly sitting up in my bed atop my tails and breathing heavily. Flare wasn't in his own room, still in the infirmary recovering from the toll his final attack had taken on him. So I was alone, waking up from the third nightmare this week. Each one taunted me and pointed out how weak I am, but just as I show my strength _they_ die again.

Am I a murderer? I reasoned that it came down to the definition of murder. Yes, I ended two human lives. Then again, I wasn't exactly human myself. Not anymore, at least. Second, they were going to kidnap me and subject me to a fate worse than death had I not fought back. Self-defense isn't considered murder, I supposed.

I drew my knees in closer to myself. But did I have to kill them? Surely I only had to incapacitate them, and at times I hoped that I had done only that. But whenever I tried to convince myself of it, I remember their horrific wounds and charred flesh. If either of them survived, it would be a miracle.

My head dropped into my knees. I'm a killer. I might not be a murderer, but I killed two people with families and friends. They might not have made the best choices, joining an organization bent on forwarding science at any cost to hybrid kind… my kind… but they didn't have to die for it! And certainly not at my hands either...

Surprisingly, my tears didn't hurt me the way most water did. So for the third time since returning from that lab, I mourned my fallen adversaries.

Did Flare ever wake up from nightmares about the people he obliterated in an instant? He must have heard those people right outside before his Aura nuke went off. Or what about Kyu, who saw and fought exactly who I did? Still, I wasn't about to ask them, especially not at… 2 AM. Ugh.

But every time I closed my eyes, I was greeted with acrid fat melting off charred, bleeding muscle. It looks like I wouldn't get any sleep again, just in time for my first Math quiz. I don't even remember what it was over either. At this rate, I really never will succeed here.

I nearly jumped out of my fur as somebody softly knocked on my door. Curious, I uncurled myself and walked up the newly-repaired door. A quick look through the peephole revealed… Hope. I scowled, but nevertheless opened the door. "What do you want?" I spat.

He cringed at my brusque tone. "I'm so sorry to come over so late at night… Umm… would you like a friend to talk to tonight? I couldn't really sleep myself," he chuckled nervously.

As I stared him down he seemed to always shy away from eye contact. "You… just want to talk?" I repeated.

"Mhm!" he nodded, straightening up a little. "It doesn't have to be about anything in particular—you could tell me about your friends or your games… as long as you don't have to be alone." He gave me a look like a shy puppy dog. His tail was even wagging.

"Come in," I muttered, waving him in. He respectfully avoided my tails, instead skirting around me to stand against the wall.

"So…" I said.

"Well… sometimes it helps people to talk about what bothers them. It lets them put their problem into words so they can make more sense of it. Would that help you?"

I sighed. "I'm not doing too well in school here. Nobody explained to me that you pretty much have to learn twice as fast as most people in order to make room for training. _And_ I have to work twice as hard there, too, since I have to get into the tournament before sign-ups close."

"Oh, that does sound really hard," he replied sympathetically. "How do you think you'll be able to do it?"

I groaned, pawing back into my room. Hope's claws clacked as he slowly walked behind me. As I sat on my bed I sighed and said, "I really don't know… how do you put up with it?"

"I guess I just got used to it," he spoke softly, sitting beside me. "It was hard for me at first, too, you know. It's better here than the city I grew up in, where I couldn't hear myself think over the anguish of so many people around me. Still, I was so far behind in my schoolwork that only this year I caught up with my age group."

"When did you come here?"

"About four years ago. I was twelve but in the fourth grade, since my parents didn't care enough to make me go to school and it always hurt too much to go myself. I got lots of help from the teachers here, though, and now I'm all caught up."

"Sorry to hear that," I replied, trying my hardest to distract myself.

"It's okay now, but thank you. So you said you were having trouble with training?"

I took a breath. "Yeah, just… it's so hard. Every day I push myself as hard as possible, but I'm still miles away from ever joining a team."

"Why do you want to join a team so bad? It's a good goal, yes, but I'm curious why you want it so badly."

"Because… because… it's my fault!" I finally admitted, both to him and myself. My head hung in shame. "I'm as much to blame as you are for Flare's kidnapping, if not more so. So I promised myself that I would become strong and powerful like the rest of you guys, so if Plasmid ever comes after us I can actually do something other than watch and hope you're strong enough without me."

"Oh, Eon…" Hope whimpered, gently placing his soft, furry arms around me. "Nobody blames you for what happened last week. Not me, not Kyu, nobody. We all understand that you tried your hardest, and in the end it's thanks to you we managed to rescue Flare at all."

"And maybe if I'm skilled enough in combat… I don't have to kill anyone else," I muttered.

"Is that what's bothering you?" Hope asked gently. I had a feeling he knew this all along.

"Yeah." I finally gave in, tears welling up in my eyes. "I killed two people. But if I knew what I was doing, like you do, I could have just knocked them out or something! But no, they're dead because of my overwhelming incompetence!" I cried more openly.

Hope pulled me closer to him, letting me cry into his fluffy chest. His fur was rather soft and comfortable, I had to admit. "It's okay, just let it all out," he whispered, petting my back. "Death isn't easy on anybody, and killing is even harder to live with. But… well, do you trust me, Eon?"

"Trust you?" I lifted my head. "For what?"

"Well…" he thought for a moment. "Do you trust me to see what lies ahead for you? What dangers you need to be aware of?"

I thought back to the mission. "I guess so…"

"I think you'll attain your goals. You'll be a strong yet gentle fighter, you'll keep up in your classes, and you'll be able to move on from this too. Just be patient with yourself, okay?"

The sincerity in his voice was overwhelming, and I found myself relaxing for the first time that night.

Hope began to rub behind my pointed ears, which was remarkably pleasurable. "And until then, I'll be here for you," he promised. "So relax for now. I'm here; you're safe with me, I promise."

His gentle massaging, warm fur, and promise of a better future seemed to drain all the tension out of me. When I closed my eyes this time, I saw myself in the Battle Stadium, surrounded by cheering spectators…

* * *

When my alarm woke up, I couldn't help but smile, I felt so refreshed. Apparently Hope had… tucked me into bed before he left…

I blinked a few times, my cheeks burning. Hope and I… cuddled last night? Okay... I guess I was so tired it barely registered with me how awkward that was. Hopefully he didn't tell anyone, that would be so embarrassing...

Regardless, I slipped out of bed and went about my day. I still bombed the math quiz, but at least I felt alert for it. Lunch with Kyu and Matthew went smoothly, and aside from a comment on how I looked better today it seemed Hope didn't say anything to them, which I appreciated.

Training went just as well. While I wasn't blasting out flamethrowers nearly as well as I'd like to, both Vulcan and Kyu remarked at how much I improved overnight. From there I was set to practice on my own.

Ninetales can produce a sort of ethereal blue fire with practice, one that can spring up nearly anywhere as long as I have a direct line of sight. The exception being inside another person, of course—as I had to generate a large amount of Fire Aura on my target, the Aura within someone else would just consume it far faster than I could produce it.

Instead, I practiced on rocks that had no more Aura than anything else. Large, half-melted marble pillars dotted one corner of the gym. It was a challenge among Fire-types to see how much of the pillar one could melt before getting exhausted. The very best students can nearly bring it down to a puddle, but no one has ever gone all the way.

My record at the moment was being able to make the top glow brightly and get a little soft. Time to see if I could break that. I focused intently on the spot I wanted my flame to appear, the very tip of the remarkably candle-like stone. Just as if I was possessing someone, I let my Aura stretch towards the tip of the stone and pool into it. The air rippled as my stamina drained, but with just a few more moments of concentration… the stone caught fire.

It let off a bright bluish-white glow as it heated the stone beneath it. I continued to pour my energy into my fire, trying to get it to burn as brightly and warmly as possible. But eventually I shut off the flow of Aura and gasped for breath. That was exhausting.

I stepped up to the pillar, casually prodding its top to gauge my process. The rock glowed a dull red and felt smooth under my hand, but not malleable. Suddenly the pillar to my right became wholly engulfed in a blue fire, which seared the rock until it became coated in lava. I turned to see another vulpine hybrid holding a gnarled, burning stick in her hand.

It looked as though she was wearing a dress, with very long brick-red fur that flowed down to her wrists and ankles and an orange fire design by either leg. Beneath the dress-fur black-furred paws and hands were barely visible. Atop the red was some white fur that cascaded to a point from her chest and down her torso, and yellow fur atop that which flared up at her shoulders like a curling fire.

She held her pose for a few more moments, letting the marble drip down and pool at its base, before cutting off her fire and fixing me with a proud smile. "How was that?" the fox said.

I blinked. I had never heard a girl with such a masculine voice… unless she wasn't a girl? The voice seemed to skirt the line between male and female, so that didn't help.

"Pretty impressive, right? The name is Delphyn; nice to meet you!" Well, the name didn't help matters much. He… she… _they_ slipped their wand into their sleeve-fur and extended their hand in greeting. I shook it politely.

"I'm Eon. It's a pleasure to meet you, Delphyn."

"Eon? Perfect!" they smiled. "So, are you really as good at controlling people like they say?"

"Excuse me?" I hadn't told anyone about my… talent.

"Possession, hypnosis, whatever you call it. You know, that thing where you look at someone's eyes and you take control of them?"

"Yes, I know…" I couldn't help but be a little wary of the fox hybrid. "But how do _you_ know?"

"Come on, people are still talking about how you possessed Plasmid guards and got them to shoot each other on your super special mission. And besides, everybody's seen you and your girlfriend practicing it!"

I blushed. While I did still take control of Kyu every now and then, mostly for her sake, I didn't know people were watching us! "Okay, yes, so I can control people, but I don't ever do it without their permission, I promise. Also, she's not my girlfriend."

They laughed, revealing sharp, white teeth. "Whatever you say, friend. My point is that I'd love to have you on the team I'm making for the autumn tournament!"

My ears perked. Surely I heard Delphyn wrong. No team would ever want me for the tournament with how weak I was. "Come again?" I asked.

"Do you want to join my team?" they enunciated.

"Well, of course!" I exclaimed. "But other than my whole Hypnosis shtick I'm pretty pathetic." To demonstrate, I quickly gathered up some Aura and let loose a flamethrower that traveled a whole five feet. I maintained the fire for a good ten seconds or so, but I quickly became exhausted after that. Closing my maw, I gave Delphyn a serious look. "That's about the best I can do. I mean, you saw me with that tiny flame earlier, right?"

"Yes, I know, but… I think you're worth it! See, I've been working on my own skills, one of which is soothsaying." They extracted the stick from their sleeve-fur, setting it alight in the process. "See, my wand burns with a magical fire that helps me to meditate. With enough concentration… I can catch glimpses of the future."

I was skeptical. "So what did you see?"

"I had a vision of a bright silver fire that could force anyone, even the sun itself, to bow to him. He would secure my victory."

"What's this about the sun?" I asked. "Yeah, I guess can make someone bow to me if I ever needed to, but I've never done anything with the sun."

A light seemed to flash in their eyes. "Have you ever tried?"

"No. What do you mean?"

"Come on, I want to show you something. Bring that other Ninetales, too. If she's not your girlfriend, she'll want to be after this." They winked. My eyes widened.

I went to get Kyu.

"Where are we going, and who's she?" Kyu asked.

Delphyn groaned. "Right, forgot to say. I'm biologically male and I like it that way. I'm a guy, you two, got it?"

"Oh, sorry!" Kyu apologized immediately. "Your fur really threw me off, I guess."

"Don't worry about it," he said. "So long as you don't make any jokes about my robe fur looking like a dress, we'll get along just fine."

"Right, so, what did you want to show me?" Kyu asked again.

"Follow me, you two. I think Eon's got a nice surprise for you, Miss Ninetales."

"My name's Kyu, by the way."

"Kyu, got it. Now let's get going." We were led out the door that took us directly outside, putting between the two wings of the school in a shaded sort of alleyway. We walked along the side of the school until we reached the academy park, where Delphyn turned to face me.

"Now I want you to focus on making the sunlight more intense," he instructed.

Kyu narrowed her eyes, and I could only give him a look of confusion. "What? Make the sunlight... more intense?" I asked.

"Just will it to happen, I guess." Delphyn clarified casually, but I heard both of their heartbeats quicken.

So I did what he asked. I imagined the sunlight getting brighter and harsher… and it did. Perhaps it wasn't too much brighter, but the area around me seemed filled with solar energy.

Delphyn began cheering, Kyu groaned and slumped against the brick wall, and I could only look at them both, bewildered.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"You're a walking drought!" he exclaimed. "You can make the sunlight intensify just by _thinking_ about it!"

"So what? If I can do it, I'm sure anyone else can."

"Oh my God, you just get all the luck, don't you…?" Kyu muttered.

"No, no, no, see, this is more like your Hypnosis," Delphyn explained. "There are exactly two hybrid species in the world who can make the sun brighter without really trying. Groudon, an ancient, immortal hybrid who's rarely if ever seen by anyone and is the only of his kind… and a very few lucky Ninetales."

"So I'm one of these few?" I clarified. Delphyn nodded emphatically. "Kyu?" I turned to my fellow Ninetales.

"He's not lying," she grumbled. "But jeez, you've got me jealous. It's like you're the paragon of Ninetales-kind, between your Drought ability and your Hypnosis. So ironic, too…" her eyes flicked to Delphyn, and she finished, "considering you still struggle with basic combat techniques."

"Don't worry about that, Kyu," Delphyn said with a manic smile. "I'll train him up over these next couple months; come the tournament, we'll have the best team in the league!"

Kyu laughed. "Good luck with that! My team always dominates!"

"Except against Fire Storm," Delphyn teased.

Kyu huffed. "Why does everybody mention that? Of course we lost to Fire Storm; Fire Storm always wins!"

"Yeah, they do. But I'm bet with my team we'll finally knock them down a few pegs," Delphyn boasted.

Kyu snorted. "Now _that's_ a laugh."

"I guess we'll just have to see, won't we?"

"Yeah, I guess so." Something seemed to click in her mind. "Wait, you're adding _Eon_ to your team?!"

"You bet I am," Delphyn grinned. "There's no way I'm passing up a Drought user who can win by staring at people."

"But… he's weak! Sorry Eon, but it's true." The comment stung a little, but I'd gotten used to it, so I just waved it off. Kyu continued, "Surely you've seen him actually fight, right?"

"No, but I'm sure I can help teach him anything he needs to know."

Kyu turned to me. "Are you sure this is a good idea?"

I shrugged. "This might be my only chance to get into the tournament. Even if I do get kicked out in favor of someone stronger, then… well, I guess that's just the same as being rejected in the first place. But at least I have someone willing to add me and train me, right?"

Kyu thought it over. "As long as you both know what you're getting into…"

Now I was starting to feel hurt that she had so little confidence in me. "I'll make it work, Kyu. I promise. Remember, I'm learning pretty fast, right?"

Kyu smiled. "That's right, I guess you are! Well, good luck you two." She turned around and walked back to the gym, her beautiful tails swaying behind her.

Delphyn had to tap my shoulder to get me to stop staring. "So my team's all training out in the park. Why don't we go out and say hello?" he suggested. I nodded, and so we went further outside. The difference in our training was again evident when I had to sprint to catch up with his jogging, and he slowed his pace as soon as he looked back.

Within a minute or so we entered what appeared to be a war-torn field, with fire crackling through overgrown thorns above overturned earth pocked with dozens of holes. Suddenly some of the brush exploded in a bright fireball and two figures darted out of it. As I approached, I was able to make out more details. One of the hybrids was taller and avian, with white and red feathers and a cruel yellow beak and talons. A V-shaped hairstyle (featherstyle?) jutted out from the back of his head. His movements were _blindingly_ fast, to the point where I couldn't even tell the end of one strike to the beginning of the next.

Yet his foe casually dodged his movements, his graceful form exuding… serenity. The tan-furred canid hybrid seemed to have small leaves growing growing out of various points all over his body, and it took a couple moments to realize the two enormous leaves growing out of his head were actually ears and the one growing out his backside was a tail. He gripped a large blade-like leaf in each hand, and spun and twisted in unison with the avian hybrid's movements to both dodge and counterattack with precision and fluidity.

Suddenly the earth trembled beneath them and a third hybrid joined the fray from underground, spinning between and up into the air. Initially the stockier hybrid had his upper torso and head encased in a cone of steel, but as he descended the cone broke apart into two massive and vicious metal claws, with a third crest of steel growing out of his back. His face resembled that of a mole's and his brown fur was marked with gashes of red that at first glance looked like blood.

His huge claws served as both offense and defense in his assault, with each strike conveying huge power and a surprising amount of speed. When he attacked, the other two would dodge instead of block and it wasn't hard to see why. If those claws were tough enough to burrow through the ground like that, getting hit by one would definitely leave a mark.

Their three-way melee continued for some time, with all combatants preferring close combat yet still occasionally jumping back to throw chunks of earth, breath fire, or summon strange plants that choked the others. Finally the avian got a decisive blow on the leaf-like hybrid, kicking him square in the chest and sending him flying through the air out of the field. Soon after he jumped and kicked off the mole's steel crest, flipping in the air to engulf him in flames.

He drew closer to attack again when the mole raised his claws in surrender. The fiery bird relaxed. Soon the leafy hybrid rejoined the two and they sat and talked amid the scarred earth.

I jumped back to reality once Delphyn clapped my back. "So, why don't I go and introduce you?"


	11. Chapter 11 - Team Solar Flare

Chapter 11: Team Solar Flare

I nodded weakly at Delphyn's request. The Delphox shoved me forward as we descended the hill down into the destroyed field. The mole-like hybrid with the giant steel claws seemed puzzled at my approach, the leaf-fox waved politely, and the fiery bird simply watched me walk up to him. He was even taller in person, I found; I had to crane my head to meet his gaze. He seemed to be rather like a chicken, if they had evolved to become predators rather than prey.

"Team, this is Eon," Delphyn introduced me. "He's a Special-based utility fighter, specializing in debilitation and weather control. He's a bit of a fixer-upper, but I'm sure we can get him up to speed by the time Tournament comes around. And Eon, this is Exca, Bracken, and Blaze." Delphyn pointed to the mole, the leafy hybrid, and the avian in turn.

"What is a fixer-upper?" Exca spoke up. He had a very foreign accent that I couldn't pin down, and I now noticed that he had dreadlocks and a fierce expression, and he wore only muddy jeans.

"Eon, this is Exca, our terrain control expert and tank," Delphyn explained. "To answer your question, Exca, he's not too good at fighting yet, so we'll have to train him extra hard so he's ready, too."

"Punch my hand," the fire bird said, extending a talon-like hand with its palm towards me. I responded with the hardest punch I could muster, yet his arm was as steady as a rock. He returned his hand to his side and closed his eyes in thought. My heart sank.

"I know he doesn't seem like much, Blaze," my advocated insisted, "but he really is something special. His friend tells me he's a quick study and I had a vision about him!"

Blaze opened his eyes and affixed his gaze on me. "And what do you have to say for yourself, Eon?" His voice was deep and smooth, like a lion's.

I sighed. "I really don't know. I just got here a couple weeks ago and while I've been trying really hard I just can't compare to the rest of you who've had years of battling experience."

Blaze didn't respond. Eventually it was the Bracken who spoke up. "Well, why does Delphyn want you so bad?" His voice was light and airy, like the wind.

"My, um, 'utility' I guess," I responded. "I can make the sunlight grow more intense really easily and I can take control of someone if I look into their eyes." I noticed Exca averting his gaze, yet Bracken retained eye contact and a dreamy smile. "Not that I'd do it unless I had to, of course," I added.

"Well, could you try it on me, then? I'll do my best to resist your control, so we can see just how useful it is," Bracken said, scratching one of his leafy ears lazily. He looked into my eyes expectantly.

I looked back at him and exerted my Aura to overpower his. I was surprised how effectively he kept me out, forcing his own Aura into a sort of mental shield around him. Nevertheless I broke through quickly—

And fell backwards as Bracken tackled me, snapping back into my own body. Luckily I had fallen on my tails and Bracken hadn't touched them, but I still scowled at him.

His relaxed smile never wavered. "So that's its limitation, then. You can't guard yourself while trying to bring someone under your control."

"You could have warned me…" I muttered as I stood.

"Is it then that you have the Drought talent too?" Exca asked as I dusted off my tails.

I looked to Delphyn, who nodded with a grin. "Yeah, watch," I replied. I closed my eyes and willed the sunlight to grow stronger, causing the air around me to become charged with energy once again. I opened my eyes to find Bracken in a state of ecstasy, his head tilted up as he soaked in my sunlight. He let out a sound that seemed halfway between a groan and a whimper. Blaze began to tap a foot anxiously, his muscles tightening beneath his feathers.

"What's going on with them?" I asked.

Delphyn's bushy yellow tail was whipping back and forth. "Can't you feel it? The sunlight seeping through your fur into your soul, filling you to bursting with Fire Aura?"

Now that he mentioned it, I was feeling quite energized. I smiled and allowed my own tails to wag as well. "But what about Bracken? He's a Grass-type, right?"

"Oh, but what could be better for a patch of grass then some sweet, sweet sunlight?" Bracken groaned.

"My team practically rides on you if you sign up," Delphyn said. "Unlike almost all hybrids at this school, your weather control barely costs you anything. You're not feeling at all tired from that, right?"

"No, I barely felt it."

"Yes! Yes, oh, this is perfect! You see, in this special sunlight of yours all of our fire-based attacks are much stronger, and Bracken has a unique ability to turn it into pure energy, which makes him scary fast. Faster than Blaze, even! You saw him fighting, right?" I nodded, recalling my complete inability to track his movements. "Can you see just how important you are now?"

I ducked my head, embarrassed. "But I'm still so bad at fighting in general!"

"Do you truly believe in Eon, Delphyn?" Blaze asked.

"Of course I do!" Delphyn exclaimed.

"I see. Come with me, Eon," Blaze said, already walking away.

I followed the bird to an unscarred patch of earth; I noticed Exca behind me effortlessly shifting boulders and mounds of earth back into the ground, leveling the field somewhat, while Bracken regrew the grass from seemingly nothing. "So, you are a Special-based fighter, yes?" Blaze asked.

"I'm not sure what that means, sorry."

"Weak body, powerful Aura." He remained expressionless.

I sighed. "I'm more like 'weak Aura, weaker body.'" Tilting my muzzle towards the sky, I let out a flamethrower that burned brightly, but only reached a few feet above us. "I tried my hardest on that," I admitted.

"Do not discount yourself. Honesty is good; self-hatred is not," he said bluntly. "And you are wasting Aura."

"What do you mean?"

"Where are you converting your Aura to fire?"

Where? I had never thought about where before. Taking another Aura-filled breath, I tried to focus on where Aura ended and fire began and found it to be in the back of my throat, which I relayed to Blaze.

"That will waste Aura. Ignite the Aura on the tip of your tongue as you exhale instead."

I nodded and once more prepared a flamethrower, this time focusing on my tongue to burn the Aura there instead. It felt strange and I ended up coughing out a few sparks as they built up in my throat, while the fire itself was pitiful.

"Again," Blaze instructed. I complied and failed once more.

"Again." Try, fail.

"Again." Blaze watched silently every time I attempted to produce fire as he instructed. But with practice, my technique gradually improved until it met and quickly surpassed my previous limits. By the time an hour passed, I was gasping.

"Again," my instructor commanded. Mustering what Aura I had left, I took a deep breath and exhaled fire with all my might. I scorched the grass over six feet away.

"You have potential," Blaze decided. "Your dedication is clear. I will train you further."

Even though this is the third time I was told I had potential by a Fire-type so far, I still smiled. "Really? Thank you, Blaze!"

"Now spar with me. Strike my chest or head by any means you can."

"Wasn't I supposed to be a Special fighter or whatever? The whole 'weak body, strong Aura' thing?" I questioned.

"You want to be weak?" he growled.

"No, sir," I replied hastily and took a fighting stance.

"Call me Blaze." He threw a punch.

It was clear he was holding back—a lot—but I was nevertheless too slow to dodge or block and was hit square in the chest. I grunted in pain. Blaze frowned, then swung his leg towards me.

This time I was a little more prepared and manage to slide under it and aim a punch at his stomach, but he quickly brought his leg down on my arm, bringing me with it. I quickly pulled away and got back to my feet, then attacked again.

Blaze snatched my wrist out of the air. "Stop," he commanded. "You must learn how to strike properly."

What followed was a lecture on proper physical technique, to remain coiled but not tight, so that I can move at any time in any direction. I had to use force from my whole body, putting all of my weight into each attack while also maintaining balance. As he moved me through the motions of a correct sidekick, I noticed Delphyn watching from some distance away. He waved politely when I met his gaze.

"Eon, focus." When I looked to Blaze to nod, I caught him staring at Delphyn too.

When I could successfully punch, kick, chop, and block to Blaze's satisfaction, I was released to train elsewhere. "You know, I never did explain how the tournament works, did I?" Delphyn said as I approached.

"No, but I've been studying myself. It's a six-on-six battle where only one hybrid's on the field at a time, and you can't bring anything but the clothes on your back. I'm supposed to do what you say since you're the team captain, right?"

"Perfect! Guess I don't have to lecture you, then. Now go to Exca; I want you to train against type disadvantages, got it?"

"Type… disadvantages? Was this what Professor Darck was saying about water and earth hurting me more?"

"Yeah, that's right. Exca can explain."

I voiced my understanding and found Exca shoving a pile of dirt into one of his burrows with the enormous claws he had for hands. The sharp, steel claws nearly reached his feet and were as wide as they were long; how he hefted what had to be at least a hundred pounds of metal was beyond me. "Um… excuse me? Exca?" I called.

Exca looked up from his shoveling. He seemed to squint a lot, but whether it was the light or my being there I couldn't tell. "May I help you, Eon?" he asked. At least his voice was amiable.

"Delphyn wanted you to help me with type disadvantages, and explain it if you could."

"Yes, okay," Exca nodded. "A hybrid has Aura that is one of many types. You have the Fire-type, and I have both the Ground-type and the Steel-type. One type may have the advantage when used on another type. For example, the Fire Aura has the advantage against the Steel, hurting the Steel hybrid deeper than a regular hit. So if you breath me with fire, I will hurt more than normal because you have hurt my Aura too. But! I also have the Ground-type, so my Ground Aura absorbs the Fire Aura and weakens it, so it balances to no change."

"Let me see if I have this straight," I interrupted, shaking my head to clear it which caused my mane of hair to whip back and forth behind me. "Fire-based attacks are more effective against Steel-types because Fire Aura consumes Steel Aura, but it's bad against Ground-types because Ground absorbs Fire? And because you have both, they cancel out and my attacks do no more or less damage, right?"

"Yes, you are understanding now. There are many types with many effectives and not effectives, but you may find it easy if you look at the types in nature. Earth puts out fire in nature, yes? So too does fire melt steel?"

"Which is why water tends to sting, right?" I ventured.

"Yes, it does give me a diminishing feeling." Exca nodded.

"Oh, you too? I was referring to myself."

"Steel is impartial to the Water Aura, but Ground is washed away. So you see, it is my weakness."

"And how many types are there...?" I muttered.

"I believe there is eighteen or so. Don't have worry; the interactions will come with time, okay?"

"Yeah, alright. So if I'm going to train with you…"

"I will fight with my Ground Aura, so you can feel how it hurts and how to avoid it. Do you have ready? I mean, are you ready?"

I took the fighting stance Blaze taught me. Already I felt far more powerful in this pose, if somewhat fatigued from my prior training today. In response Exca drove his claws into the ground, creating a rumbling that resulted in a pillar of rock jutting from the ground toward me. I sprang away and strafed around Exca, breathing fire as I ran. In response the mole pulled his claws up, and with it a huge boulder that halted my fire.

Suddenly the boulder came hurtling towards me and despite my attempts to jump over, it caught my legs and sent me falling on my face. I groaned in pain; it felt like my paws had been bruised all the way down to the bone.

"Can you stand, Eon?" Exca called.

"Yeah," I called back. Getting to my feet, I noticed that Exca had prepared an assault of floating pebbles. No sooner did I gasp than the rocks all flew towards me at an incredible speed. I dashed off to the side, cringing from my hurt paws, but I nevertheless managed to approached and exhale more fire. Exca pulled up a wall of rock, but I skipped over it and burned my foe from the other side. Exca in turn skipped out of the flames and swung his massive claws at me. I pulled back and quickly tried to summon my foxfire between us to no avail.

Exca drove his claws deep into the ground before him, and as he pulled them apart a massive crack opened in the ground beneath me. My paw was caught in his trap before I could jump and before I knew it I was trapped in a tight prison of rock, my arms pinned beside me and my tails crushed against my back. The dirt seemed to sap the strength from my body like water would, and despite my struggles I could not break free.

Shortly thereafter the ground shifted away to give me room to jump back to solid ground, and once I felt grass beneath my paws again I groaned and stretched. All my muscles ached and I found myself trembling and panting… I couldn't recall being so exhausted before.

"Ready for the second round, Eon?" my foreign friend asked, adopting a battle stance with those wicked claws pointed straight at me.

"No!" I exclaimed. "I mean, no, I feel totally spent now." I groaned and fell on my blessedly soft tails, silently wishing my arms would stop twitching.

"Already? But I barely used my attacks!" Exca said, surprised. He eyed me quizzically. "Are you sure you have the strength to fight?"

I expected myself to grimace, but instead my resolve toughened. "I have no choice," I said coolly, remembering my talk with Hope last night. "If I'm not strong enough now, I have to train as hard as I can until I get there."

Exca grinned, revealing excessively long front teeth like a rodent's. Were moles rodents? "I like this idea! Now up; if you can move, you can train! I will use lighter force as you are weak now, but do not give up! Understand, friend?"

I gave him a desperate look. He only sighed. "Fine. Stay weak as you are. We do not need you on this team, then."

That brought me to my feet in a heartbeat. "No! But Delphyn, he—"

Exca laughed heartily. "That's what I wanted to see! Now prepare; I will start attacking again. Fight back with all you have!"

All I had wasn't much. Although I managed to dodge the much slower rocks he sent hurtling towards me, my fire soon dried up until I could barely cough out sparks. Exca didn't let up, however, and forced me to dodge volley after volley of pointed stones until my arms hung limply at my sides and my tails dragged along the ground. As my chest was pelted with the sharp rocks, I only fell over, too tired to even care about the blood soaking my silver fur.

Fur. Two weeks ago I would have said "shirt", because I would have been a regular human back then. Instead I'm a fox who stands on two legs and managed to get caught up in a world of combat and kidnapping… although I hoped that one time was a fluke. Still, now that there's an entire organization of people who want me as a lab rat, it's not like I could stop pushing myself to get stronger.

Exca looked down at me, his face darkened by the encroaching twilight. "So… you give up then? You wish to resign from Solar Flare?"

My heart sank. "No, I can… I can be strong enough…" I pushed against the ground with all my might in an attempt to stand, but my arms simply gave out again, driving the rocks stuck to my chest deeper into my flesh. I groaned half-heartedly. I felt smooth metal beneath me and suddenly I was standing, resting against Exca's sturdy body.

Enraged, I pulled away from him with my newfound energy and began channeling a curse. My mind became filled with strange, arcane knowledge and with nothing but will alone I caused Exca's claws to become heavier. _Much, _much _heavier… _I though with a sadistic grin. The mole yelped as he fell forward, the weight of his claws alone driving them deep into the soil. "Do _not_ touch my tails!" I shouted.

And then my anger, my energy, and my knowledge faded away and I tumbled back to the ground in an exhausted heap of fur. "What in hell did you do?!" Exca shouted, struggling to stand.

After a moment of pushing through my haze of exhaustion, my reasoning returned. I just cursed Exca! "Oh, jeez, I am so sorry! You must have touched my tails when you lifted me up." This time I gathered the energy to stand and make my way to him.

Exca glared at me. "I brush against a tail of yours and you make my claws too heavy to lift, pretending too you were out of energy? You have issues, friend!"

"It's not like that, really!" I stammered. "Trust me, it's an instinct that I can't control." I swung my tails around, and felt the soft fur covering them, instinctively revelling in their splendor while more consciously cursing their power. "When someone makes contact with my tails, I literally can't help but… punish them for it, I guess. Something deep inside me says that they're too sacred for other people to touch." I quickly added, "Which makes no sense to me but I really just have to live with it, I'm sorry."

"And so now I may not lift my claws because your instincts?" His muscles trembled as he succeeded in pulling his metal claws off the ground, but he soon gasped as he dropped them again.

"It'll wear off over time, but I can remove it right now if I brush you with them again."

"And this will not cause me to have another cursing?" he asked warily. "Will my teeth be too heavy next?"

"No, trust me on this; as long as _I _touch _you_ with them rather than the other way around, I can remove the curse." I stepped sideways beside him.

"Whatever, I would just appreciate to move again."

As my tails lowered, they once more froze a few inches from his muddy fur.

"What are you waiting for?" Exca asked, not daring to move in case he would get cursed again. "Will you remove the curse or not?"

My instincts fought with me, insisting he deserved this and I shouldn't get my tails any dirtier for nothing. I growled with frustration in a rather animal way. Bloodied fur, cursed tails, fox noises…!

"Stupid hybrid body!" I shouted, pushing my tails into his back. Before my instincts could resist again I willed with all my might to remove the curse and quickly pulled away.

Exca sighed with relief as he lifted his claws again and swung them back and forth. Seeing his relieved expression caused me to feel a flicker of regret deep inside… I had a feeling forgiving my next victim would come a little easier.

A flash of light signalled Matthew's teleportation, causing Exca and me to jump. "Eon, I found you!" he exclaimed, soaring towards me with arms outstretched. He stopped just before me, however, eyeing the tails curled against my back with his big, blue eyes. I sighed, pulling my tails down to rest parallel to the ground. Matthew wasted no time in hugging me then, seemingly unaware of the blood on my chest.

"Are you done with your training? I hope so! It's Friday night so I wanted to play Mario Kart with you and Kyu in Flare's room!" His words came out rapid-fire, matching the tempo of his swinging tail.

"Oh, is he feeling better?" I asked, relieved. Whatever Flare's Aura nuke did to his body, it took more out of him than the Healing Machines could fix and he's been bedridden ever since.

"He can stand up now," Matthew nodded emphatically as if my roommate had fully recovered. "So I wanted to surprise him with a video game party!"

I glanced to my side to see the sun had nearly set. "Um, let me make sure Delphyn doesn't have anything else for me to do today first," I said, making my way over to where Blaze had trained me earlier with Matthew close behind.

There I saw Delphyn and Blaze sparring, with the bird attempting to bring the fight into close combat while the fox used telekinesis to hold him back. Even if Delphyn lifted Blaze into the air, the moment Blaze touched any surface he immediately sprang free of the psychic power with what to me looked like sheer power. Delphyn nearly dodged a devastating kick that cratered the ground as I walked up. Both hybrids relaxed, gasping from their exertion.

"How can I help you, Eon? And who's your friend?" Delphyn asked between breaths.

"I just wanted to know if there's anything left for me to do before we call it a night; Matthew here wanted to hang out with me is all."

"Oh, don't worry about it, then," Delphyn decided, sitting down on the grass. "We should all call it a night, really. Mind telling Exca?"

"Sure," I said, looking around. Finally I spotted Bracken clutching those leaf blades of his. He moved through a variety of forms, taking swipes at imaginary foes all without losing a hint of composure.

My ears fell. All my teammates were so well-coordinated and powerful and I could only stand there and get bruised and broken, unless Exca went easy on me.

"You alright, Eon?" Delphyn asked, a concerned look falling over his vulpine face.

"Do you really want me this much? I mean… I'm so pathetic! Even when Exca went easy on me I didn't stand a chance."

"Oh, come on, it can't be that bad! How inexperienced could you be?" Delphyn clapped my shoulder, looking directly to me with a confident expression.

How inexperienced could I be…?

"Matthew, Blaze, I'd like to speak to Delphyn alone for a moment." Delphyn looked at me quizzically, but didn't speak up.

Blaze nodded and sprinted away in a flash, and Matthew nodded. "Okay! I'll go watch your Leafeon buddy, then; talk to me when you're all ready to go!" He flew over a fair distance away to where Bracken twirled and slashed.

"What's all this about, then?" Delphyn asked solemnly.

I sighed. "Can you promise me not to hate me after this?"

"Of course! Cross my heart!" Delphyn nodded emphatically. "So, what's on your mind? You can tell me anything, trust me."

"Up until about two weeks ago, I was a human." The words came out easier than I expected.

Delphyn was puzzled. "A human? But how?"

"Kyu, that other Ninetales cursed me to become a Ninetales too when I touched her tails. It's a long story, but basically I'm stuck like this forever."

"Don't say 'stuck like this' like being a hybrid is a bad thing!" He snarled. I turned downtrodden, however, and his expression softened. "Sorry… I've got bad memories of humans."

"So, do you hate me like other humans?"

"What? No! I mean, you're not a human now, are you? Besides, my vision said I needed you and I trust my foresight." He looked up into the darkening sky and took a deep breath. After a moment, he chuckled. "You know, that does explain your inexperience and complete lack of self-esteem… but worry not, Eon! I'm going to train you up even if I have to train twice as hard every day until the tournament begins!"

I looked to him in amazement. "Really? I'm still worth it even with… my human origins?"

He grinned. "Look; humans are awful and I hate just about all of them; never met a nice human in my life." I started to object but quickly reasoned against it. "But you… even if your life up until now was less than ideal, I've never seen anyone try so hard in just two weeks!"

"Thanks, Delphyn," I said, beaming. "But… please don't tell anyone. I trust you because you're my team leader, but Kyu said some of the other hybrids here would react poorly to my… you know, 'being human once' thing."

"You bet! In fact…" he seemed to debate within himself for a moment.

"Yes, Delphyn?" I spoke up after a moment.

He seemed to laugh to himself. "Oh, what the heck, it's only fair. Eon, let me tell _you_ a secret of mine as collateral."

My ears perked up at that. "What is it?"

He glanced off behind me. I turned around to see Blaze with his arms folded, gazing off at the setting sun. Looking back, I saw a dreamy smile stretched across Delphyn's face. "I love him," he said softly.

"Who? Blaze?" My eyes widened.

"Yeah… Isn't he just so cool and handsome? He always helps me out in my team leadership and he's so quiet and kind and… yeah…" Delphyn sighed. "I love him with all my heart, Eon." He gave me a wink. "And now we can both trust each other to keep our secrets. If I let it spill you were once human, you out me as gay, and vice versa!"

I took a moment to have that sink in. Then I nodded.

"Thanks for letting me get that off my chest, by the way. I haven't told anyone that, and if Blaze knew I loved him so much, well…" he scratched the back of his head. "I don't think he'd be on my team for much longer to be honest. So, any more secrets to share?"

I smiled. "No, that was it, really. How about you?"

"I'll never tell," he winked. "Have a nice night, Eon!"

"You too, Delphyn."


End file.
